This book is one of the most comprehensive guides to international maritime law from the Russian perspective. It consists of three relatively independent sections: Russian Maritime Law, International Public Maritime Law, and International Private Maritime Law.
First section discusses the development of the maritime law as a branch of the Russian law. It examines concepts and sources of the Russian federal laws, secondary legislation and customs, including the influences guiding the future of Russian law of the sea. .
The second section examines International Public Maritime Law including the principles, sources, subjects, as well legal status of the vessel, including the vessel's state flag, her name, state registration, the problem of "flags of convenience," vessel's documents, the crew, and the master. This section further details the current international legal regime of maritime spaces, provisions concerning legal protection of marine environments, ensuring navigation safety, international legal regulation of the work of seamen, international inter-governmental marine organizations, and settlement of international public marine disputes.
The third section is devoted to International Private Maritime Law and discusses its principles and sources, conflict-of-law rules, structure and types, and the main choice-of-law principles used today in international private maritime law. This section also discusses the following institutions and sub-branches within international private maritime law including: carriage of cargoes and passengers by sea, general average, salvage, collisions of vessels, marine insurance, limitation of liability, international non-governmental maritime organizations, and settlement of international private marine disputes.
