European Union competition policy is shaped rather differently in particular economic sectors. The best example of this is maritime transport. In recent years this area has found itself at the center of the European Commission's attention. Inter alia, this has been caused by breaches in the prohibition of abuse of a dominant position. This situation is a result of a lack earlier of appropriate legal instruments that could permit the application of Union regulations in this area. Only in 1986 was decree nr 4056/86 issued, which established detailed regulations for applying article 81 and 82 of the Treaty of Rome to maritime transport. Those cases examined buy the European Commission and the European Court of Justice largely concern the still unclear issue of joint domination. The majority of offences is committed by maritime transport conferences, which by operating in conjunction abuse their dominant position.

A debate has been going on for some time within the International Maritime Organization (IMO) concerning necessary legal considerations that would improve the system of international legislation referring to liability for damage connected with the use of shipping vessels. A proposal relating to a general convention on liability for damage caused by vessels was not approved. On 25 November 1999, the Congress of the IMO passed resolution A.898/21/: Guidelines on Shipowners' Responsibilities in Respect ofMaritime Claims. These guidelines have been passed on to member governments and they contain recommendations that those governments should begin to try to persuade maritime ship owners to obtain insurance or another type of financial security in accordance with the principles set out in the guidelines. The guidelines also urge ship owners to obtain insurance cover for their vessels in accordance with the demands of the guidelines, and also to deal with claims relating to any one of their ships. The Legal Committee of the IMO was directed to supervise and review the guidelines, should the need arise.

The author analyzes the transport policies of the European Union. Section V, part lII of the European Union Treaty (articles 70-80) defines the responsibilities ofmember states in terms of introducing a common transport policy. The regulations of this section mainly apply to rail, road, and internal waterway transport. The regulations of section VI, part III of the European Union Treaty (articles 81-97) are addressed to all states in the world whose economic activities distort or threaten to distort competition in the European Union. The establishment and development of a transeuropean transport, telecommunications, and energy network (articles 154-156) constitute the central element in an economic zone without internal borders. The contemporary economy is a result of two trends: a process of globalization and a process of regionalization. The principle of subsiduarity plays a major role in the process of regionalization. It filters through to the idea of the ,,Europe of Regions." In essence, states transfer their responsibilities and authority via the Union to regions. The Union only retains those responsibilities and authority that are essential to its functioning. Remaining rights should be transferred downwards, to the level ,,as near as possible to the citizen." The Union implements the principle of the decentralization of power. Matters connected with the financing of the traditional sector of the maritime economy will depend on the appropriate formulation of the ,,voivodeship contracts" that will soon be concluded by the Council ofMinisters and voivodeship assemblies. The assemblies will have the most influence on the way in which European Union structural funds can be used.

Contemporary economic policy is a result of two opposed methods of influencing the market: the liberal and the protectionist. The philosophy of the open market was created with the participation of the judges of the European Court of Justice. The following are usually seen as belonging to the general principles of international economic law: the free will of the parties to an economic transaction; pacta sunt servanda; and arbitration in the case of international economic disputes. However, the general character of the principle of economic freedom is questioned by some authorities. The Codifying Commission of Maritime Law should consider the entirety oflegal problems connected with maritime shipyards, with sea transport, and port services. It should aim at developing a unified concept in the area of business activity and services, the freedom of labor and the freedom of services. The division of rules governing international sea transport (which are inevitably based on international models) and those governing coastal transport (in which economic freedom in the sense applicable in processes of European integration does not apply) is confused. Such a division has to be seen as a legacy of a by-gone era and as interference on the part of administrative law in legal relations connected with coastal transport. In Poland there is no up-to-date public service sector against which anti-monopoly regulations could not be enforced. In their place, subvention law regulations should be applied. Without distinguishing, for example, life-saving and chemical clean-up operations as public sector elements, it will be difficult to achieve expected economic goals.

This essay presents the legal concept of a "second register" in the Polish Republic, called the Register of International Shipping. The author analyses the phenomenon of "second registers" as forms of supporting national fleets and draws attention to the fact that this is a reaction of traditional maritime states to the development of open registers in flag-of-convenience states. The author attempts to classify various maritime registers in shipping practice. He places particular emphasis on the register policy of the EU. This is an expression of support for their own fleets by member states. The author refers to international principles relating to the registration of ships contained in the 1986 UNCTAD Convention relating to conditions of registering vessels. In detail the essay discusses Polish regulations concerning the affiliation of ship and register, contained in the new maritime Code of 18 September 2001. He sets out clearly the "openness" of the Polish shipping register and the potential ease with which a vessel may assume the Polish flag. Part of this study is made up of extracts from the author's own project for legislation concerning a Register of International Shipping. In the light of this project, a Polish "second register" would become a supplementary register of a special kind, closely linked with the basic, national shipping register. The basic purpose of the register would be to increase the international competitiveness of Polish ship-owners, by creating for them a range of tax advantages and other preferential treatment. The owners of vessels in the register of International Shipping would only pay tonnage tax on their use, and a range of Polish work regulations would not apply to the crews of those ships.

In 1851 the US Congress passed a bill limiting liability in relation to maritime claims. This legislation has remained in force almost unchanged until today. However, the institution of limitation of liability owes its development mainly to US judicial decisions. In comparison to the 1957 and 1976 international conventions relating to the limited liability of the owners of sea-going vessels, the range of the US legislation is relatively narrow. The author argues that - because of their too low limits - neither of the acts she discusses ensures satisfactory damages to those making claims. US courts seem to realize this because they frequently refuse the right to limited liability.

In the light of the London Convention of 1989 concerning sea-rescue and salvage, the recovery of property lost at sea may be the subject of a salvage agreement, to the extent that the person deciding on the matter of salvage considers that those objects are threatened by some danger. The situation concerning salvage of property that has already sunk is quite different. Usually haste is not a factor here and the possibility exists of concluding an appropriate agreement. One of the main purposes for beginning work on the London Convention concerning Sea-rescue and Salvage - besides the need to create a willingness among salvagers to work to protect the natural environment - was a desire to expand the scope of maritime salvage. This aim was certainly achieved. In light of the decisions of this convention, almost any property may be the subject of salvage operations, including sunken property.

One of the most important challenges of our times is to attain balanced development. The author of this article considers issues connected with balanced development in the context ofprotecting the maritime environment. Two principles are most important here: the principle of prevention and the principle that the polluter pays. The principle of prevention has the highest place in the catalogue of the principles of international environmental protection law. It is based on the concept that environmental protection aims are best achieved through proactive policies. Alongside prevention, the principle that the polluter pays has an important role in trying to attain balanced development. This principle refers to the fact that the person that causes environmental damage must cover the costs of this.

New Polish legislation has been passed concerning sea fishing. It regulates certain matters differently from previous legislation. This article deals with this topic, but also goes beyond it. It points to the necessity of defining sea fishing sea fishing more broadly than this legislation does.

The i 982 UN Convention on the law of the sea came into force on i 6 November i 994. international Tribunal for the Law of the Sea established on the basis of this convention. The Tribune's official languages are English and French. On 18 October 1996, the Tribunal began its activities in Hamburg. The Tribunal is made up of 21 independent judges elected for 9 years. While performing their duties, Tribunal members enjoy diplomatic immunity. The judges choose from their own number a president, Vice-president and Secretary for a term of 5 years. Beginning from the first judgement issued on 4 December 1997 relating to the "Saiga ", the Tribunal of the Law of the Sea has considered to date ten cases, most of which concerned the immediate freeing of ships and temporary funds.

This essay is a general discussion of the most important changes in Polish maritime civil law introduced by the Maritime Code of 19 September 2001. The new Code has been in force since 5 June 2002. The author discusses the scope of the modifications contained in the new Code in relation to the previous Code of 1961. In consideration of the fact that the majority of norms of former maritime law have remained in force under the new Code, the author defines the new legislation as a recodification, rather than a wholly new legal act. He emphasizes and discusses in detail the good points of the new systematization of the maritime Code. In his discussion of particular regulations of the new legislation the author points to a series of dubious or, indeed, mistaken solutions. An example of such is, perhaps, the introduction of a new institution - the Polish Yacht Register. The most important changes in maritime law include the modification of the system of realizing the mortgage of ships. Mainly modelled on British law, the modified system attempts to avoid difficulties stemming from the realization of a mortgage in the course of the execution of a court judgement. It introduces the possibility of seizure of a ship covered by a mortgage and even its sale by the mortgager. The final part of the essay is a list of executive acts added to the Maritime Code that should be swiftly published. The author makes a selection of these instruments, indicating the sequence of their introduction.

The new Polish Maritime Code is an inspiration to look at Polish maritime law as a value in itself. The article marks a beginning of such an inspection. It is designed to provoke further discussion on the topic.

This article deals with the new Polish legislation of 9 November 2000 concerning Maritime Safety. This legislation harmonizes in detail the basic issues in what can be broadly understood as Maritime Safety. The author of this study has frequently drawn attention to the inadequacies of regulations up to now in the area of maritime safety. He has emphasized the need for legislation on maritime safety. This legislation regulates the issue ofmaritime safety in the following: ship building, and fixed machinery and equipment on board ships (articles 6-16); the qualifications and composition of the crew (articles 17-25); safety in navigation (articles 26-39); and saving life at sea (article 40-50). The legislation is of a framework kind, and the emergence of rational legal system of safety at sea depends on the addition of many executive legal instruments to the legislation. A characteristic feature of the legislation is that the requirements relating to maritime safety are based on international standards. Thus numerous regulations within the legislation refer to well-known international conventions in the area ofmaritime safety, for example, to the SOLAS, LL, CSC, COLREG, SAR, and other conventions. The legislation also contains a range of regulations relating to supervision of safety at sea, and to sanctions for non-observance of requirements relating to maritime safety. The author discusses the new legislation in its entirety, emphasizing its strong and weak points.

As one of the sources of law, the Constitution of the Polish Republic mentions ,,instruments of local law" issued by, among others, the directors of maritime public institutions, on the basis of legal authorization. The first, and hitherto only, postconstitutional piece of legislation referring to instruments of local law produced by the directors of maritime public institutions is that of2000 concerning maritime safety. This settlement of the matter gives rise to some doubts on the grounds of constitutionality and of its accordance with the principles of legislative methods. It requires reworking. This article indicates directions that such reworking could take.

This article discusses two legislative renvoys to the 1961 Maritime Legal Code which are contained in new legislation from 2000. The first of these is contained in the legislation of 21.12.2000 concerning internal waterway transport; the second is contained in the legislation of 29.11.2000, the Law on Atomic Matters. The essay is organized according to the issue under discussion; hence it deals with two quite different questions: lien on vessels (maritime mortgage), and liability for atomic damages. Such separate matters are linked by new legislation's connection with the Maritime Legal Code; that is the attempt by Polish legislation to exploit the achievements of maritime law. The renvoy of article 25 of legislation concerning internal waterway transport demands the implementation in internal waterway transport of the institution of lien on vessels (an institution that is characteristic of maritime law). The article criticizes this solution, demonstrating the impossibility of recording, in the administrative register, the property rights relating to a vessel involved in internal waterway transport. The second renvoy, contained in article 102 of statute 2 of the Law on Atomic Matters, envisages, in the event of limitation of liability on the part of persons employing atomic devices, the possibility of using the institutions of the limited liability fund, as established and allocated (such institutions being regulated according to maritime law). The author points to a host of problems that may arise if this revision is implemented.

The preamble to the international convention SALVAGE 89 contains the principle of protecting the maritime environment. Damage done to the environment means real physical damage done to human health or life at sea, or to resources in coastal waters or those inland, or to areas adjacent to these, caused by pollution, contamination, fire, explosion, or other similar serious events. The principles for calculating rewards for those who perform rescues are contained in article I 3 and 14 of the SALVAGE 89 convention. The new convention, just like the 191 O international convention on the lack of uniformity in several regulations concerning assistance and saving, is in favor of the principle ,,without saving there is no reward." Article 14 of SALVAGE 89 contains the principle of allocating rewards to those who through their efforts prevent (or lessen) environmental damage. Such a reward is called special recompense. It seemed that the 1989 convention had accommodated the interests of all parties. However, in practice it has emerged that those who perform rescue efforts continue to be unhappy about the solutions that have been adopted. A new solution concerning reward for saving has been adopted in the SCOPIC clause. An appeal to this clause in an agreement is entirely dependent on the will of the saving party. The essence of the clause is to introduce a new method of calculating the special recompense owed to the saving party for his/her actions, in the course of which environmental damage was avoided or lessened.

In article 184, § I of the Maritime Code ( article 188 § 1 of the New Maritime Code), Polish law defines time charter as a contract by which the ship-owner agrees, for remuneration, to hand over to the control of the chartering party a vessel with its crew for a defined period of time or for the duration of one or several successive voyages for purposes defined by the contract. The chartering party has the right only to give the captain instructions in the matter of the exploitation of the ship and within limits set out in the charter contract. The scope within which the crew is under the command of the charterer can be fixed by the parties to the contract. Almost all authors of handbooks on maritime law and of studies of chartering are agreed that the temporary charterer of a vessel does not have any right to interfere in navigational matters.

The article presents the principles and the organization of supervision and protection of seagoing activities that are applied and enforced by the navies ofNATO member states. Assuming that the most likely kind of conflict in the future will be a regional conflict, characterized by limited range and a fluctuating level of danger, and also by a continuation of commercial maritime activity, NATO has developed appropriate procedures in the area of supervision and protection ofmaritime activity, both during the conflict and in a time of crisis (and of growing crisis). This article discusses contemporary views relating to supervision and protection of maritime activity. It presents the regional system of supervision and protection of maritime activity, its detailed organization, and the principles of its operation. It presents - for the first time in a Polish publication - the issue of supervision and protection of maritime activity developed by NATO.