NI Publishes Guidelines for Collecting Maritime Evidence, Volume 2

The Nautical Institute has released second volume in the Collecting Maritime Evidence series with a special focus on electronic evidence – what it is, how to preserve and collect it, and how it can be used to understand the circumstances that led to a maritime incident.

While not completely replacing traditional records such as hard-copy logbooks, data from electronic sources such as ECDIS, VDR and AIS is vital for the investigator. Admiralty Judge Mr Justice Teare points out that the great benefit of such evidence is that “electronic or digital records cannot lie or have a faulty or imperfect recollection. They will be the best evidence of what happened.”

The book’s expert contributors are drawn from a wide range of disciplines. Among the subjects they discuss are the roles of the average adjuster and the mariner lawyer, evidence collection from the P&I perspective and that of the naval architect, and fire, deterioration of agricultural cargoes, machinery failure and surveying.

Introducing the volume, Captain Ian McNaught CVO MNM FNI, Deputy Master of Trinity House, emphasises, “It is imperative that seafarers understand the need for accurate evidence after an accident on board ship.” The expert advice contained here and in Volume 1 will enable seafarers to protect themselves and defend their actions through the production of such evidence.

To purchase a copy of Guidelines for Collecting Maritime Evidence, Volume 2 visit https://bit.ly/2k7ly1M (£50.00, NI Members £35.00). Guidelines for Collecting Maritime Evidence, Volume 2, can be bought together with Guidelines for Collecting Maritime Evidence, Volume 1, for £90.00 (NI members £63.00).