The International Regimes for the Compensation of Oil‐Pollution Damage: Are they Effective?

This article discusses the question whether the current international regimes are adequate for the compensation of oil pollution damage. It sketches the regime of the CLC 1969 and the Fund Convention. Then it will show that by in 1984 and 1992, among others following the catastrophe with the Amoco Cadiz new initiatives were taken with the goal of providing more compensation. In 2000, following the Erika incident, the IMO Legal Committee proposed new amendments, which are to take effect in November 2003. However, even before this new regime has entered into force the sinking of the Prestige has cast doubt on whether this new regime is indeed sufficient to deal with major oil spills. Hence, this paper will address some of the critical issues underlying the current structure of the regime and discuss possible future developments, as indicated in doctrine and at the policy level. Finally, the paper formulates concluding remarks.