Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly
ATHENS CONVENTION TIME BAR
Paul Todd*
Feest v SWSHA
The issue in Feest v South West Strategic Health Authority
1 was the nature of the time bar in Art.16 of the Athens Convention 1974.2 It was held to be a substantive, and not merely a procedural, bar, which therefore extinguished the claim. Consequently, it applied as a defence to a contribution claim (the original damages claim having originally been brought against a third party), and not merely to a claim to damages.
Facts and main issue
An accident occurred in the Bristol Channel involving a rigid inflatable boat (RIB)3 and injuring Dr Feest, who was on a corporate team building exercise organised by her
1. [2014] EWHC 177 (QB); [2014] 1 Lloyd’s Rep Plus 25.
2. Athens Convention relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea 1974.
3. (Celtic Pioneer). The Marine Accident Investigation Branch account of the accident can be found at www.maib.gov.uk/cms_resources.cfm?file=/CelticPioneerReport.pdf (Report No 11/2009). The action of the sea threw Dr Feest from her seat, and she suffered back injuries on landing heavily back into it.
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