Date of Award
2016
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Master of Science in Maritime Affairs
Specialization
Maritime Law & Policy
Campus
Malmö, Sweden
Country
Chile
First Advisor
Theocharidis, George.
Abstract
The dissertation is an analysis on the problem of the prevailing legal lacuna regarding responsibility and liability due transboundary offshore pollution. The investigation starts with the examination of the discussion at IMO and its competence to regulate the offshore industry. Afterwards the discussion at the Legal Committee of IMO is analyzed through the different doctrines developed by the authors and the International Court of Justice. Based on a possible competence of the IMO, we introduce the discussion on which international instrument is appropriate to regulate the legal lacuna. Finally, in the concluding chapters, different international instruments are compared highlighting the most relevant elements to take into consideration. Some elements are discussed at the end of the final chapter presenting the position of the authors regarding the feasibility of the implementation of certain regimes and the economic impacts of enforcing such regulation. As there are certain approaches that lead to socially optimum results, different desirable solutions are evaluated. The need for an economic analysis of the solution is emphasized.