Mark brings a wealth of experience to Brookes Bell. Prior to joining the company, he worked with the London Fire Brigade for over twenty years, specialising in fire origin and cause investigations, and fire behaviour. Mark has carried out over 2,000 fire investigations, ranging from small compartment fires to multi-million pound losses, and including those of accidental and deliberate origin. He has also given expert testimony in Coroners, Magistrates and Crown Courts on numerous occasions.

He joins the business as the company continues to expand its scope and scale, increasing its operations around the globe and developing regional centres of excellence.

Dave Myers, an associate and fire investigator at Brookes Bell, said: “Fire and explosion investigation is a key part of our work at Brookes Bell. Mark Ross is a hugely respected investigator with a wealth of experience. He is therefore perfectly placed to bolster our fire investigation team as we continue to offer global expertise in the marine, energy and offshore, and industrial sectors.”

Mark comments: “Brookes Bell’s excellent reputation is well known, and I am very much looking forward to utilising the same detailed, forensic approach to fire investigation with Brookes Bell’s team as I used with the London Fire Brigade. As the breadth of inspections expands in the shipping and offshore sectors, it will be a privilege to work alongside such a wide-ranging, multi-disciplinary team.”

Mark will be based in the Group’s Sidcup office.

Expert technical evidence delivered by Dr. Martin Jonas, a partner and consulting scientist at Brookes Bell, played a critical role in overturning the Volcafe Ltd and others v. CSAV case, heard in the UK’s Court of Appeal in November 2016.

The decision by the Court of Appeal has been widely welcomed by the shipping industry, which raised concerns over the ‘detrimental impact’ of the original High Court Ruling that set aside centuries of legal precedent relating to the carriage of cargo.

The case concerned the carriage of 17 non-ventilated containers of bagged coffee between Columbia and Germany in 2012. The coffee was transported by the Chilean container line, CSAV. Despite following the orders given by the shippers and lining the containers with paper in accordance with established shipping practice, a small percentage of the cargo was found to be damaged when it arrived. The cause of the damage was condensation.

When this case was taken to the High Court, the judge went against previous legal precedents and declared CSAV liable for the damage, even though the company had followed standard industry practice in lining the containers. The reason for this verdict was that CSAV could not prove that the lining was a “sound system” for preventing damage, despite its wide use in the industry. This new precedent shifted the burden of proof in cargo claims, with wide-ranging ramifications for the worldwide container industry and the broader shipping industry. Specifically, the ruling limited the right of ship owners to rely on an ‘inherent vice’ defence if cargo is discharged in a damaged condition.

Unusually for a shipping case, the case was taken to the Court of Appeal, and subsequently overturned. During the proceedings, the Court accepted expert evidence from Dr. Jonas at the court of first instance, relating to the science of condensation in the container trade, the limitations of industry guidance and the difficulties of transporting cargo without any wet damage at all.

Dr. Jonas said: “Thanks to a combination of practical and theoretical expertise, Brookes Bell was uniquely placed to deliver expert technical opinion during this case. Where the claimants were forced to rely on two expert witnesses to deal with industry practice and scientific aspects separately, Brookes Bell was able to testify on both accounts. Our evidence stood up to scrutiny in one of the highest courts of the land, and was preferred by both the original High Court judge and the Court of Appeal judges.”

Brookes Bell was involved in the case from an early stage once the incident was pursued as a claim, providing an initial opinion. As the case evolved, Brookes Bell was able to develop its role, producing expert reports and oral evidence accepted at the High Court, and subsequently the Court of Appeal. The successful grant of the appeal ensured a return to previous legal thinking, and marked a significant victory for the container shipping sector. This would not have been possible without the integrity and quality of the evidence presented by Brookes Bell.

A copy of the judgment is available at:
http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2016/1103.html

Other news releases on this case at:

http://www.nepia.com/news/press-releases-and-media-area/north-pi-club-supports-members-in-overturning-detrimental-cargo-carriage-judgment/
http://www.themecogroup.co.uk/charterers-liability-insurance/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/11/E-Bulletin-November-2016-Volcafe.pdf
http://www.quadrantchambers.com/news/the-court-of-appeals-decision-in-volcafe-v-csav

Our Hong Kong office is holding an evening seminar on 3 November 2016 on the following topics:

GMO Cargo Contamination - What can be done? Our scientist, Tim Moss, will discuss what a GMO cargo is, why it has recently come under scrutiny in shipping and what can be done to mitigate the issues.

Post Incident Container Inspections Our master mariner, Graham Hill, will give a presentation based on his experience of the practical difficulties encountered when inspecting containers and cargo damaged during fires, flooding, collision and container collapses.

The evening will commence at 6.30pm and drinks and canapés will be served around 8.15 pm. For more information and to reserve your place, please contact Connie Li at Connie.li@brookesbell.com.

View the invitation here.

Brookes Bell recently sponsored a very successful Young Maritime Professionals port visit to London Gateway, a container terminal operated by DP World. The trip provided a useful and interesting insight into port operations, as the group were given the chance to tour the port and the logistics park. If you are a YMP member and interested in attending the next port visit on the 29th September contact Amanda Hastings to book a place at ymp@shippinglbc.co.uk