Keywords

Crew labor contract dispute, fast-track service, online mediation

Case Overview

Xu and nine other seafarers could not get paid for their service on board “SHUN EN” owned by a Qinzhou shipping line amounting to more than CNY 800,000. By building a fast track for the filing, hearing, enforcement and closure of seafarer-related case, Haikou Maritime Court guided the seafarers to file a lawsuit by email and apply for arrest of the ship. The court took only 7 hours from docketing the case to ship arrest and ascertained the fact of the wage arrears of more than CNY 800,000 through online mediation.

Judgment

The two parties reached an agreement soon after the mediation: the defendant agreed to pay the outstanding wages in part and pay the balance within a month after the holiday, and the ship was under arrest by the court until full payment. The dispute was settled as the ship was released and the defendant resumed production after full payment.

Significance

To solve the difficulty in crew wage arrears and to expand the scope of maritime judicial service, Haikou Maritime Court has formulated the Measures on Facilitating Easy Access to Justice for the Cases Involving Seafarers and Fishermen, taking consideration of the occupational nature of seafarers who are working at sea most of the time. By relying on the smart trial platform which enables telephone instructions, online case filing, online service, online mediation, and WeChat payment, the difficulties faced by seafarers in mailing litigation documents and presence in court are resolved and seafarers can participate in the lawsuit without disembarkation. In handling this case, the court has taken multiple measures, e.g. preservation and mediation to resolve the dispute, winning high remarks from the parties as the seafarers recover their wages in a short time and the ship escapes auction.