The Admiralty Newsletter - 26 May 2026
A weekly briefing featuring insights from shipping's leading lawyers covering regulatory updates, emerging risks, and the practical implications of new case law.
US sanctions are driving a widening set of legal consequences for shipping: S&P transactions are being disrupted by escrow freezes, enforcement is sharpening focus on non‑US shipowners trading with Cuba, and antitrust claims against Chinese container makers are moving forward in parallel with related market scrutiny.
In the courts, there is new guidance on asymmetric jurisdiction clauses and concurrent proceedings, while recent decisions revisit recurrent pressure points: laytime and notices of readiness, freight broker liability post‑Montgomery, and Australia has ruled on the non‑limitability of wreck‑removal claims.
Case law
Commercial Court gives important guidance on asymmetric jurisdiction clauses andconcurrent proceedings (4 Pump Court)
High Court dismisses CSL Australia appeal on limitation of liability for wreck removalclaims (Colin Biggers & Paisley)
Perils of service (or not) of an NOR (Weightmans)
Court decides laytime dispute in favour of charterers (Hill Dickinson)
No right for shipowners to limit wreck removal claims in Australia (HWLE)
Supreme Court strips freight brokers of federal preemption defense (MMWR)
High Court of Australia rules that all claims for wreck removal costs not limitable (NorthStandard)
The Catalan Sea Court of Appeal ruling on sanctions risk assessment for shipowners (Wikborg Rein)
The search for Moby Dick: the role of state law in maritime tort cases (Kaufman Dolowich)
LLMC 1976, wreck removal and overlapping heads under Art 21: the High Court ofAustralia has spoken (IISTL)
Shipping exchange argues Strait of Hormuz is not closed in lawsuit defence (Financial Times)
Lessons learned from the Adani Enterprises OFAC settlement (The Volkov Law Group)
High Court of Australia decides no limitation for wreck removal claims (Nair Legal)
Large settlement for the Baltimore Bridge: implications for the sector globally (IISTL)
One battle after another: freight brokers in a post-Montgomery world (Benesch)
US antitrust charges against Chinese container makers to proceed despite non arrival of legal papers, lawyers say (Lloyd’s List)
Regulatory
US Customs clarifies Jones Act rules for offshore platform (Holland & Knight)
What to expect from the UK ETS (Lloyd’s List)
IMO adopts the MASS Code: a new era for autonomous shipping (IISTL)
Act now, not later: understanding the legal risks of autonomous vessels before theMASS Code becomes mandatory (Penningtons Manches Cooper)
Turkish maritime cabotage: tugs green (Esenyel Partners)
Improving maritime safety under the Safer Seas Act (Maritime Injury Center)
FMC proposes changes to rulemaking process to expand stakeholder influence (Husch Blackwell)
The modernization of the Navigation Code in the Law on the Sea (Mordiglia)
Trump sanctions on Cuba take full swing against non-US shipowners (Lloyd’s List)
News & Opinion
The fate of damaged goods during force majeure (Al Suwaidi & Company)
Beyond the asset: legal due diligence and M&A trends in vessel acquisitions (Reed Smith
Singapore escrow freeze disrupts ship deals amid US sanctions crackdown (Lloyd’sList)
Singamas lawyers up over US price-fixing claims (TradeWinds)
Managers face increasing legal risks over known ship defects, insurer warns (TradeWinds)
‘The world is not going to be the same’: global turmoil rattles shipping (TradeWinds)
Structuring maritime technology trials and pilot projects: balancing risk andinnovation (DAC Beachcroft)
Sea Sustainability Series: recent developments and the impact of global conflicts (DWF)
Hormuz Disruption: Emerging Production Risk for Global Operators (Moore & Van Allen)