5.4 Maritime liens and enforcement liens
In conformity with the Brussels Convention of 1967, a number of claims are secured by a maritime lien on the vessel (MC Section 51): wages to master and crew, port dues, damages as a result of collision etc., provided the “reder” is the debtor. The Norwegian word “reder” covers – as explained in 3.4.4 – the bare boat charterer.(1) We have other claims secured ex lege, see e.g., the Liens Code (Act 2/1980) Chap.6, but they are of minor importance in our context. In other words, the vessel may be encumbered – and as a first priority lien – by an act of the charterer. This is one of the owner’s risks connected with bare boat chartering. According to the Norwegian rules, a maritime lien cannot be registered (MC Section 20). On the recognition in Norway of foreign maritime liens, see 5.5 below.
The number of maritime liens is limited and these encumbrances are characterized by the connection between the claim and the vessel. However, a vessel may serve as security for other claims – with or without a link to the vessel – created by the decision of the enforcement authority, see Code of Enforcement (Act 86/1992 – CoE) Chap. 7 on enforcement liens.
For now, it is sufficient to refer to CoE Section 7-1 on attachment of the debtor’s property. Assuming that the object is the vessel and the charter party, an enforcement lien for claims against the owner is a lien on the vessel and is registered in NOR when the vessel is flagged-out. A claim against the bare boat charterer is a lien on the charter party and is registered accordingly in NOR (as an encumbrance on the rights flowing from the registered bare boat charter party).