Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts

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Merchant Shipping Act (No. 52 of 1971) - Sect 293

Power to arrest foreign ship that has occasioned damage

293.
(1) Without prejudice to the provisions of any other written law; whenever any injury has, in any part of the world, been caused- and thereafter that ship is found in Ceylon, a Judge of the Supreme Court may, upon its being shown to him by any person applying summarily that the injury was probably caused by the misconduct or want of skill of the master, pilot or mariners of such ship, issue an order under this section.
(a) by any foreign ship; and
(b) to any property belonging to the Government or to any local authority, or to any statutory authority exercising powers vested in it by any written law, or any citizen of Ceylon,
(2) An order under this section shall be addressed to any Shipping Officer, or such other officer as may be named by the Judge in such order, and shall require such officer to detain the ship named or identified therein, until such time as the owner, master or consignee thereof- and any Shipping Officer or other officer to whom such order is addressed shall detain the ship accordingly.
(a) has made satisfaction in respect of the injury referred to in sub-section (1); or
(b) has given security, to be approved by the Judge, to abide the event of any action, suit or other legal proceeding that may be instituted in respect of such injury, and to pay all costs and damages that may be awarded,
(3) Where it appears that, before an application can be made under sub-section (1), the ship in respect of which the application is made will have departed from Ceylon, such ship may be detained for such time as will allow the application to be made and the result thereof to be communicated to the officer detaining the ship; and that officer shall not be liable for any costs or damages in respect of the detention, unless such detention is proved to have been made without reasonable grounds.
(4) In any legal proceedings relating to any injury referred to in sub-section (1), the person giving security shall be made defendant, and shall be stated to be the owner of the ship that has caused the injury.
(5) The production of an order of a Judge, made in relation to any security referred to in this section, shall be conclusive evidence of the liability of the defendant to the proceedings.


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