General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6330 & JDOC6330 |
| Course name: | Shipping Finance Law |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme / JD Programme |
| Semester: | Second |
| Prerequisites / Co-requisites: | No |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits / 6 credits |
1.2 Course description
Shipping is a cyclical business relying on the use of high value assets, to transport goods as part of international trade. The cyclical character of the business can affect both the value of the asset and its earning capacity. Ships operate, on average, for 25-30 years and they also have a residual (scrap) value which depends on the price of steel. In addition to the volatility in the earning capacity of a ship (the freight market), the cost of shipping heavily relies on the cost of bunkers, crew, insurance and maintenance. Furthermore, the operation of the ship can give rise to liabilities which may compare in size with the value of the ship.
This course considers the legal issues arising from financing the acquisition of a ship. Various ways for raising capital are available to prospective shipowners. However, the two major ways are, first obtaining a loan to buy the ship and the second is to lease the ship, usually with an option to purchase it at the end of the leasing period.
The loan is secured by various methods, the value of the ship as an asset being an important one. However, for shipbuilding contracts, until the ship is built, its value as an asset cannot provide security to the investor. Therefore, more complex arrangements are required.
This course examines the common loan and security structures employed in ship finance to purchase a used ship and to build a new ship. Leasing of ships through bareboat chartering will be discussed. Ship registration provides an important part of the security arrangement and will be discussed in this context. The legal arrangements concern, primarily, contractual arrangements in shipbuilding, ship sale and purchase and bareboat chartering. In addition, occasionally equity may be relied upon. The course will be taught in the context of English law and Hong Kong law.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Michael Tsimplis | tsimplis@hku.hk | CCT 607 | By email |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Have a sound understanding of the legal issues arising from the major methods for ship financing and the importance of ship registration.
CLO 2 Grasp key legal principles and appreciate how they can be applied in practice to obtain security for financiers of shipping.
CLO 3 Be familiar with the enforcement options in cases of default by the shipowner.
2.2 LLM and JD Programme Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
Please refer to the following link:
LLM – https://course.law.hku.hk/llm-plo/
JD – https://course.law.hku.hk/jd-plo/
2.3 Programme Learning Outcomes to be achieved in this course
| PLO A | PLO B | PLO C | PLO D | PLO E | PLO F | |
| CLO 1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Assessment(s)
3.1 Assessment Summary
| Assessment task | Weighting | Feedback method* | Course learning outcomes |
| Quizzes | 20% | 1, 2, 3 | |
| Final exam | 80% | 1, 2, 3 |
| *Feedback method (to be determined by course teacher) | |
| 1 | A general course report to be disseminated through Moodle |
| 2 | Individual feedback to be disseminated by email / through Moodle |
| 3 | Individual review meeting upon appointment |
| 4 | Group review meeting |
| 5 | In-class verbal feedback |
3.2 Assessment Detail
To be advised by course convenor(s).
3.3 Grading Criteria
Please refer to the following link: https://www.law.hku.hk/_files/law_programme_grade_descriptors.pdf
Learning Activities
4.1 Learning Activity Plan
| Seminar: | 3 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
| Private study time: | 9.5 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
Remarks: the normative student study load per credit unit is 25 ± 5 hours (ie. 150 ± 30 hours for a 6-credit course), which includes all learning activities and experiences within and outside of classroom, and any assessment task and examinations and associated preparations.
4.2 Details of Learning Activities
To be advised by course convenor(s).
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials are posted on Moodle |
| Core reading list: | TBA |
| Recommended reading list: | TBA |
5.2 Links
Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/