Together with law firm OPF Partners and the Luxembourg University, the Luxembourg Maritime Cluster organized a conference on the prerogatives of the flag state on November 26th. This is was a dual-purpose initiative: on the one hand, and given the fact that it is vital for the future of the Luxembourg maritime sector to continue to be able to line up local expertise, we wanted to open up new horizons for the students invited from the Greater Region (Luxembourg and Nancy) and on the other hand were willing to inform the stakeholders of the prerogatives and duties of the state, especially in the context of the Maritime Labour Convention.

First conference launching a series of lectures on maritime law in Luxembourg

While he was Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade, Jeannot Krecké hugged the idea of ​​a training in maritime law in Luxembourg. A few years later, on November 26^th, the Luxembourg Maritime Cluster and the law firm OPF Partners took an important first step in bringing about a hundred people at an academic conference on the prerogatives and duties of the flag State. Shipowners and other maritime professionals in all trades, officials and union representatives took a seat at the University of Luxembourg alongside forty students from Lorraine and the Grand Duchy.

Mr. Freddy Bracke, Chairman of the Luxembourg Maritime Cluster, first opened the conference by welcoming the ability of the cluster to attract prestigious speakers like the Professor Cachard - keynote speaker of the evening – of whom he highlighted the academic and professional merits as well as its activities in the Maritime Arbitration Chamber of Paris (C.A.M.P.). According to the Chairman, the strengthening of expertise and the raising interest of renowned shipowners for Luxembourg show that the Grand Duchy is a respected booming maritime nation.

The Government Commissioner for Maritime Affairs, Mr. Robert Biwer, subsequently stressed the Montego Bay Convention (1982) which recognizes in Article 90 to any state - whether coastal or landlocked – the right to have a merchant fleet flying its national flag and the right to organize its maritime registry in accordance with international law. He also recalled two strategic guidelines which led to the creation of the Luxembourg maritime flag in 1990: the refusal to resort to a private management company and the constant demand for quality - with the corollary that the worldwide perception of the register is absolutely positive. The Commissioner expressed his regret about the existence of a certain skepticism about the Luxembourg maritime flag, which is however confined to uninitiated people.

Dean Cachard then captivated his audience for nearly an hour and approached with brio a complex subject. After recalling concepts such as ship, territoriality, registration and nationality requirements, he succeeded in unravelling the tangle of jurisdictions and sources of law, whether national, European or international (e.g. Conventions of the International Maritime Organization and the International Labor Organization). During his analyze of the Maritime Act of 9^th November 1990 to establish a Luxembourg maritime register, he stressed the ability to establish a genuine link between the State and the ship through the system of authorized maritime companies and accredited maritime managers. Professor Cachard, who is also in practice at the Court of Appeal of Metz, spoke of the protection granted to a ship by a quality flag whether through military means or - as this is the case in Luxembourg - thanks to embarked armed private security guards, technical inspections or an efficient diplomatic network. This protection is a hot topic as recalled Professor mentioning the latest case with the Netherlands taking legal action against Russia before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to free the Greenpeace activists of the Dutch-flagged Arctic Sunrise.

Given the success of this first conference, the Luxembourg Maritime Cluster proposes to launch a series of lectures on topics related to the maritime law..

"The room was packed and the feedback was absolute positive. We will pursue the course by initiating a series of lectures on the fields in which Luxembourg excels: finance, law and insurance. The Luxembourg Maritime Cluster will strengthen and expand partnerships with local parties involved in training and education." stated Mr. Freddy Bracke at the end of the conference.

"The large number of maritime professionals attending the conference speaks for itself: it demonstrates both the existence of local expertise and shows a craze that is growing with the increasing economic impact of the Blue Economy on the Grand Duchy.» according to Mr. Paul Marceul, Manager of the Luxembourg Maritime Cluster.

The Luxembourg Maritime Cluster and Dean Cachard are already planning the follow-up conferences. An event in partnership with the University of Luxembourg to make known the opportunities of the Blue Economy to the Luxembourg students is under discussion for 2014. Links should also be established with the University of Lorraine around a watch on legal topics of interest to the maritime sector.