Marine vessel mortgage under the law of the Republic of Korea

Abstract

In the article the author outlines practical and scientific significance of Korean private law study, in particular for the purposes of the development of legislation and law enforcement in Russia. The author considers the regulation of such issues of merchant shipping in the law of the Republic of Korea as the ship status, making of transactions with ships, the mortgage of ships and ships under construction, maritime liens, the order of priorities regarding claims satisfaction in the process of mortgage enforcement, the procedure of a ship mortgage execution. In some cases the author gives examples from the law of the Russian Federation that serve as commentaries or illustration to the existing differences. For example, both in the Republic of Korea and in the Russian Federation marine vessels are divided into those which are subject to special regulation as immovable property because of their relatively large size and, consequently, high value, and those which are recognized as traditional movable things because of their relatively small size and, consequently, low value. According to the current legislation, in the Russian Federation vessels belonging to the first category are considered as real estate by authority of law, while in the Republic of Korea this category of vessels relates to movable things, the regulation of which has special features appropriate for immovable things. However, an analysis of the regulation of ships in practice in the Russian Federation shows that not all provisions concerning immovable property but only their part apply to such ships. It follows that the Russian Federation in fact has the same approach as the Republic of Korea. The introduction of this approach to the legislation of the Russian Federation has been recently suggested in the course of the property law reform. In addition, the author identifies other cases where the regulation provided for by law differs in the Republic of Korea and the Russian Federation, while its practical application in these states coincides. The author concludes that such cases illustrate the existence of similar practical needs of merchant shipping activities participants. The article provides an analysis of the legislative regulation of the issues under examination, judicial practice and views expressed in the doctrine. 

Keywords:

marine vessel, merchant shipping, movable property, immovable property, self-propulsion, ship mortgage, ship under construction, maritime lien, execution of the ship mortgage, order of priorities regarding claims satisfaction