- The Lex Rhodia (c.800-46 BCE), were the Sea Laws of Rhodes, a collection of Maritime Laws regarding commerce and shipping that were adopted into Roman Sea Law and by the later Byzantine Empire (284-1453 CE).
- The Digest of Justinian (529-534 CE) was a collection of Roman Laws into three sections. Section III refers to the Sea Laws of Rhodes and deals with maritime law.
The ‘Corpus Juris Civilis’ (529-534 CE) or Digest of Justinian
- Section 1: Codex Justinianus (529 CE) compiles all the Acts since Hadrian.
- Section 2: Digesta (533 CE) which contain Articles relating to Admiralty Law.
- Section 3: Institutiones Justiniani (Institutes of Justinian I) (533 CE) which contain Articles relating to Admiralty Law
- Section 4: Novellae Constitutiones (New Constitutions) (534 CE) This section was added for Acts passed after the publication of the first three volumes.
Section 3 of the Digest of Justinian
- Ratification of Naval Law by the Roman Emperors.
- Division of Profits amongst the Crew and Regulations on Board the Vessel.
- Maritime Law. (the main Work)
- This dealt with Theft or Damage to the Cargo or Vessel.
- It distinguished between Ownership and Possession of Goods, in order to establish Liability for Insurance purposes, between the Shipper (the Owner) and the Vessel’s Crew (The Possessor).
- Specifically, D14.2 ‘De Lege Rhodia de iactu’ and D47.9 ‘De Incendio ruina naufragio rate nave expugnata’.
- Under the Lex Rhodia, the Captain was the ‘Possessor’ and the Shipper was the ‘Owner’.
Other Sea Laws
The ‘Code of Hammurabi’ (c.1,750 BCE)
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- c.1750 BCE The Code of Hammurabi is the oldest known Set of Laws, originating from Mesopotamia, but probably influenced by older Laws from Akkadia and Sumeria.
- It is a set of general Laws but contains a large section of Maritime Law.
- The Code covers collision at Sea, Liability, Rates of Pay.
The Greek City States (c.800-146 BCE)
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- The Greeks had Courts for Admiralty and Maritime Law, and separate Courts for land based Law.
- The Island of Rhodes was the most influential maritime Greek State, and their Laws became the Rhodian Sea Laws.
The Sea Laws of Oleron (1160 CE)
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- This was the Sea Law of the Atlantic. It was compiled around 1160 CE by Eleanor of Aquitaine (c.1122-1204 CE), then adopted by Richard I (1157-1199 CE) into English Sea Law.
The Black Book of the Admiralty (1270-1370 CE)
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- This is a collection of Statutes, based on the Sea Laws of Oleron, with additions, and was written in French. The Book dates from between 1270 to 1370 CE.
Sea Laws of Wisby (1532 CE)
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- Published around 1532 CE, these were a compilation of the existing Sea laws for each of the cities of the Hanseatic League in the Baltic.
The Sea Laws of Malacca (c,1400 CE)
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- These were the Sea Laws of the Sultanate of Malacca, on the Straits of Malacca. They affecting shipping between the Indian Ocean and the China Sea from around 1400 CE onwards.
Sea Law Today
- Today, Maritime Law covers the same basic items as did Rhodian sea Law:
- The ‘Carrier’, ‘Contract of Carriage’, ‘Goods’, ‘Ship’, ‘Carriage of Goods’.
- Liability, in the event of Shipwreck, Jettison of Cargo or Ship Collision.
- Possession and Ownership.
The Island of Rhodes