General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6327 / JDOC6327 |
| Course name: | Law of Marine Insurance |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme / JD Programme |
| Semester: | Second |
| Prerequisites / Co-requisites: | No |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits / 6 credits |
1.2 Course description
Marine insurance law concerns the insurance of both maritime property, such as ships and cargo, and maritime liabilities, including shipowners’ liability for crew injury or death and carriers’ liability for the loss of or damage to cargo. The carriage of goods by sea plays a fundamental role in global trade and everyday life given that international trade depends heavily on maritime transport. Naturally, the risks inherent in marine voyages would often be unacceptable without adequate insurance protection. Marine insurance law provides the legal framework that supports this vital industry, enabling the continued movement of goods across the world and facilitating global commerce.
This course introduces the fundamental principles of marine insurance law and the legal framework governing marine insurance contracts. While the focus is on marine insurance, many of the principles examined in the course are equally applicable to non-marine insurance contracts. As a result, the knowledge and analytical skills developed in this course will be relevant to insurance law more broadly.
The course explores the practical operation of marine insurance contracts, including the issues that must be considered when drafting policies and the legal principles applied when claims are presented to insurers. Students will learn how statutory provisions and case law establish default rules governing insurance contracts, while also recognising the extent to which parties may modify those rules through contractual agreement.
Marine insurance law is a sophisticated and highly specialised area of commercial law that requires a strong understanding of both contractual principles and risk allocation. The course aims not only to provide students with the technical knowledge and analytical skills necessary to navigate this field, but also to encourage critical engagement with the law by examining both what the law is and what it ought to be.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Ozlem Gurses | TBA | TBA | By email |
1.4 Course outline (for elective course)
| Please click the link here for the course outline (HKU Portal login required). |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Evaluate complex legal issues and arguments arising in the context of marine insurance law (and generally in insurance law as the principles mostly overlaps)
CLO 2 Synthesize diverse perspectives to develop well-reasoned and coherent arguments regarding marine insurance (and generally in insurance) matters
CLO 3 Understand where marine and non-marine insurance differs from each other.
CLO 4 Propose creative solutions to novel legal problems encountered in marine insurance law context
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 |
| Class participation | 20% | 1, 2, 3, 4 | |
| Take-home exam | 80% | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| *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). See also Course Outline above.
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 the course convenor.
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials are posted on Moodle |
| Core reading list: |
|
| Recommended reading list: | Arnould Law of Marine insurance and Average, latest ed via Sweet & Maxwell. (This book may seem quite detailed and challenging at first. However, as your understanding of marine insurance law develops, you will become more familiar with its terminology, structure, and context, making it increasingly accessible and valuable as a learning resource.) |
5.2 Links
Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/