This was an appeal in cassation against the judgment of the Paris Court of Appeal, 16 January 2007. A fire on the MV Panther damaged vehicles that were being transported from Ireland to Cherbourg. Their owners and insurers sued Ar Mors Viviers, whose truck appeared to be the origin of the disaster, and its insurer, Gan Assurances IARD. The Court of Appeal held that their claims were time-barred under the Law of 18 June 1966 relating to charter and maritime transport contracts. The cargo owners and their insurers appealed.

The appellants complained that the Law of 18 June 1966 only applies to transport operations which are outside the scope of an international Convention to which France is a party. In this case, where the transport in question appeared to be subject to the Brussels Convention of 25 August 1924 (the Hague Rules), it was necessary to determine whether the transport operation fell within the scope of this Convention, which the Court of Appeal failed to do. The law of 18 June 1966 governs actions relating to maritime transport regardless of their basis, whether contractual, tortious or quasi-tortious, but it only governs the shipper's liability in relation to the carrier. It is not intended to apply to actions for liability brought against a shipper by other shippers. In deciding to the contrary, the trial Judges violated arts 16, 25 and 26 of the Law of 18 June 1966.

Held: Appeal dismissed.

Having held that the Hague Rules did not regulate the regime of the liability of shippers between themselves, and having thus explained the lack of applicability of this international Convention to the legal relationship in dispute, the Court of Appeal legally justified its decision.

When the transport is governed by the provisions of the Law of 18 June 1966, a shipper whose goods have been damaged during this transport by the fault of another shipper or by an inherent defect of the cargo of the latter can, under arts 25 and 26 of this Law, bring a liability action which is prescribed after one year. Having found that the damage occurred on 25 November 1997 and that the claims had been brought on 29 December 2000 and 3 January 2001, the Court of Appeal correctly concluded that the claims were time-barred.