66143 - DIRITTO DELLE ASSICURAZIONI MARITTIME

Learning outcomes

The course is aimed at the knowledge of the marine insurance system (hull & machinery insurance, cargo insurance and liability insurance) and also transport insurance, deepening the contributions and evaluating them in relation to the specific needs of the shipping and the transport. The main goals of the course are to provide the students the appropriate tools to understand marine insurance and, more generally, transport insurance in the general framework of the private insurance.

Course contents

The course's aim is to analyse and deepen the system of the law of transport insurances and in particular marine insurances, having regard to the needs of shipping and transportation sectors.

The course will concern:

Syllabus for 7 Univ. credits (CFU):

1. The legal and institutional framework related to transport insurances and the specific issues there implied:
   1. The relevant sources of law;
   2. The main principles in transport insurances (risk, insurable interest, good faith, proximate cause, subrogation);
   3. Types of transport insurances;
   4. Their regime according to a comparative perspective;
2. In-depth analysis of marine insurances and of insurances in the maritime sector:

   2.1 The relevant sources of law;

   2.2 The main principles in marine insurances;

   2.3 The parties (insurer, insurance agent, insurance broker, P&I Clubs, reinsurance company);

   2.4 The legal and contractual regime;

   2.5 The insurance contract: form and object of the contract, the insured risk, limits to the insurance cover, the accident, burdens, duties and rights of the insured and the insurer; insurance coverage limits.

Syllabus for 9 Univ. credits and module 2 (CFU):

The following topics in addition to the above-mentioned ones:

3. The main insurance coverages in the shipping sector, according to international, EU and domestic laws:

3.1 Personal property insurance:

3.1.1 hull insurance;

3.1.2 cargo insurance and loss of profit insurance;

3.1.3 freight insurance;

3.2 Shipowner’s and carrier’s liability insurances:

3.2.1. Death or injuries to persons:

3.2.1.1 seafarers’ death, injuries and long term disability;

3.2.1.2 passengers’ death or injury;

3.2.2. others.

Readings/Bibliography

The exam must be prepared on the following textbooks and materials:

Lefebvre D’Ovidio, Pescatore, Tullio, Manuale di diritto della navigazione, XIV ed., Milan, 2016, 692-737;

S. Bagnariol, L’assicurazione della nave in A. Antonini, Trattato breve di diritto marittimo, III, Le obbligazioni e la responsabilità nella navigazione marittima, Milan, 2010, 71-88;

S. Vernizzi, Le assicurazioni P&I in A. Antonini, Trattato breve di diritto marittimo, III, Le obbligazioni e la responsabilità nella navigazione marittima, Milan, 2010, 89-102;

A. Cusmai, L’assicurazione delle merci in A. Antonini, Trattato breve di diritto marittimo, III, Le obbligazioni e la responsabilità nella navigazione marittima, Milan, 2010, 103-128.

Other recommended books:

D. Casciano, L'assicurazione P & I, Milan, 2013;

A. Dani, Assicurazioni marittime, in M. Deiana (ed.), Diritto della navigazione, collana Dizionari del diritto privato, promossi da N. Irti, Milan, 2010;

A. Dani, Le assicurazioni del trasporto marittimo, in F. Morandi (dir.), I contratti del trasporto, I, Bologna, 2013;

L. Di Girolamo, Le assicurazioni marittime e aeronautiche, in M. Franzoni (ed.), Diritto delle assicurazioni, Bologna, 2016, 143-170;

S. Ferrarini, Le assicurazioni marittime, Milan, 1991;

D. Rossano (ed.), Elementi di Diritto delle assicurazioni marittime, Padua, 2021;

F. Pellegrino, M.P. Rizzo, C. Ingratoci (ed.s), L'assicurazione dei rischi della navigazione. Scritti in ricordo del prof. Elio Fanara nel quindicesimo dalla scomparsa, Milan,2019.

Further useful books, articles and materials for preparing the exam or deepening specific topics that could be of interest for students, will be suggested during classes and through notices published on the course’s website and on https://virtuale.unibo.it.

Teaching methods

The course is scheduled during the first semester.

Lectures are aimed at soliciting the involvement of students and a critical approach to the topics discussed, also through the exam of case studies and international standard form contracts and clauses.

Attention will be paid also to the necessary link of the insurance contract to the other contracts and legal relationships executed for the performance of the businesses whose risks the former is meant to cover.

Particular attention will be paid also to the analysis of practices and case-law.

Workshops concerning specific topics and involving the participation of experts could be organized: students will be informed about them during the course and also through notices published on the professor's website.

Assessment methods

The exam consists of an oral interview aimed at assessing the knowledge acquired by the student, who will be invited to discuss the different issues included in the exam program indicated below.

The interview will in particular assess the student's ability to identify - within the law sources and the reference and bibliographic material - the relevant information for the proper awareness and to consequently explain the peculiarities of the issues concerned.

In order to pass the exam, it is necessary to correctly answer to three main questions relating to the topics specified in the exam program provided below. The student's preparation can be assessed also on the basis of further questions aimed at deepening aspects relating to the three main questions.

By way of example (taking also into consideration the inner complexity of abstractly converting in advance the above-mentioned criteria into scores), the following criteria will be used to assign the final mark (that will be out of 30/30, with honours for the best students), provided that in order to pass the exam a sufficient knowledge and comprehension of the topics and adequate language skills are needed:

• knowledge of a very limited number of topics, extensive support by the interviewer to address and answer the questions, basic yet appropriate language: 18-19/30;
• knowledge of a limited number of topics, ability to autonomously address basic legal problems, use of appropriate language: 20-24/30;
• comprehensive knowledge of the programme, ability to autonomously and critically analyse legal problems, use of specific terminology: 25-29/30;
• extensive knowledge of the programme, ability to reason autonomously and critically analyse legal problems, make connections between the topics, ability to master the specific terminology and ability to present legal arguments: 30-30 Hons/30.

During the exam the use of aids, such as textbooks, notes, computer devices, is not allowed.

Exam program for students that did not regularly attend classes:

The exam syllabus coincides with the topics listed above in the Program / contents section.

Exam program for students having regularly attended classes:

Attendance is recommended. Students having attended at least the 50% of classes will be granted the possibility to select one of the institutions discussed during classes for the assessment of their preparation. The selected topic has to be prepared also on the relevant chapter/s in the following book:

F. Pellegrino, M.P. Rizzo, C. Ingratoci (ed.s), L'assicurazione dei rischi della navigazione. Scritti in ricordo del prof. Elio Fanara nel quindicesimo dalla scomparsa, Milan, 2019.

Prof. Orrù will communicate these topics at the beginning of classes.

Students having achieved the attendance in the same academic year of the subject entry in the study plan, will be able to take the exam from January.

For organizational reasons, given that, during the exam periods, the Professor will be in Ravenna only for exam purposes, students are kindly invited to cancel from the exam list or to inform Prof. Orrù at least the day before the exam, should they decide not to take it on the date for which they enrolled.

In order to be able to fully understand the subject-matters, Private Law is propaedeutic.

Furthermore, the topics discussed in the course can be correctly understood having in mind the basic content of Maritime Law (e.g., shipowner, carrier, contract of carriage of goods or passengers by sea), therefore it is advisable to take this course only after having passed the Maritime Law course.

Teaching tools

Power point presentations and teaching materials, which will be uploaded on the website https://virtuale.unibo.it, websites, books and papers meant to deepen some topics of the course.

Further technological materials, deemed useful to teaching purposes, could be used.

Disabled Students or with specific learning disabilities (SLD) needing compensatory tools, may inform the professors about their needs in order to be addressed to the School’s specific Services and agree on suitable measures.

Office hours

See the website of Elena Orrù