Maritime Charterparty Clause Library

A curated collection of twenty standard charterparty clauses—hire, off-hire, demurrage, lien, termination, force majeure, arbitration, seaworthiness—ready for copy-paste drafting. Trusted by law firms, charterers, and shipowners.

1. Hire & Payment

1.1 Basic Hire
“HIRE shall be USD [●] per day/per ton, payable by Charterer on ____ day(s) basis in advance at Owner’s bank account in [currency], against provision of charterparty and invoice.”
1.2 Payment Terms
“All payments under this Charterparty are due on presentation of Owner’s invoice, free of any off-set, counterclaim or deduction, by telegraphic transfer to Owner’s bank account within __ days.”

2. Off-Hire

2.1 Off-Hire Events
“The Vessel shall be off-hire for any period during which she shall be unable to carry out her service under this Charterparty owing to breakdown of machinery or equipment, accidents, grounding, or detention by authorities or inspectors.”
2.2 Off-Hire Rate
“Off-hire periods to be at a rate of [100%/50%] of daily hire, calculated pro rata for any part of a day. Off-hire begins at first outage of service and ends at full restoration of operational capability.”

3. Laytime & Demurrage

3.1 Laytime
“Laytime allowed: Loading [X] days; discharging [Y] days. Sundays and holidays excepted except as per Charterparty override.”
3.2 Demurrage
“Demurrage at USD [●] per day or pro rata for part of a day shall accrue in respect of laytime used in excess of the allowed period. Payable upon completion of discharge in full.”
3.3 Despatch
“If laytime used is less than allowed, Charterer shall receive despatch at half the rate of demurrage, payable within __ days after completion.”

4. Charterer’s Lien

4.1 Lien Clause
“The Owner shall have a lien upon cargo, sub-cargo, freight, and sub-freight for all sums due under this Charterparty and all costs of recovering the same.”
4.2 Exercise of Lien
“In the event of non-payment, Owner may exercise lien by private sale or arrest of the Vessel in any jurisdiction, without prejudice to other remedies.”

5. Force Majeure

5.1 Force Majeure Defined
“Neither party shall be liable for failure or delay in performing obligations due to events beyond reasonable control, including war, strikes, epidemics, government actions, or natural disasters (‘Force Majeure Event’).”
5.2 Notice & Mitigation
“Affected party shall notify the other in writing within __ days of such event and shall use all reasonable endeavours to mitigate its effect and resume performance.”

6. Termination

6.1 Termination for Breach
“Either party may terminate this Charterparty by written notice if the other commits a material breach and fails to remedy within __ days of notice requiring remedy of such breach.”
6.2 Termination for Illegality
“If performance becomes illegal under any applicable law, this Charterparty shall automatically terminate. Hire shall accrue until such termination date.”

7. Arbitration

7.1 Dispute Resolution
“All disputes arising under this Charterparty shall be referred to arbitration under the Rules of the London Maritime Arbitrators Association (LMAA), in London, UK. Award shall be final and binding.”
7.2 Governing Law
“This Charterparty shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law, except where inconsistent with mandatory provisions of any applicable international convention.”

8. Seaworthiness & Maintenance

8.1 Seaworthiness
“Owner warrants that the Vessel will be seaworthy, properly manned, equipped, and maintained at the commencement of each voyage and throughout the Charterparty period.”
8.2 Maintenance
“Owner shall maintain Vessel in class and keep all certificates valid. Owner to make good any deficiency to ensure continuous performance of Charterparty obligations.”

9. Bunkers & Fuel

9.1 Bunker Quantity
“On delivery Vessel to have at least [●] metric tons of bunkers on board; on redelivery, Charterer to return Vessel with same quantity, quality, and always in safe operational condition.”
9.2 Bunker Quality
“Charterer responsible for provision of bunkers compliant with ISO 8217:2017. Any deviation shall render Charterer liable for damages and fuel testing costs.”

10. Insurance & Indemnity

10.1 Hull & Machinery Insurance
“Owner to maintain hull and machinery insurance on standard mutual form for 100% of insured value, covering war risks, strikes, and riots.”
10.2 P&I Insurance
“Owner to maintain Protection & Indemnity club cover for third-party liabilities including crew claims, pollution, and wreck removal with unlimited limits.”
10.3 Indemnity
“Charterer shall indemnify Owner against all liabilities arising from Charterer’s negligent orders, cargo-related claims, fines, and delays attributable to Charterer’s breach.”
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