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Sub-contracting in maritime transport: quasi-delictual action excluded

Sub-contracting in maritime transport: quasi-delictual action excluded

Published on : 03/01/2025 03 January Jan 01 2025
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In the field of maritime transport, Article L. 5422-19 of the French Transport Code limits the liability of a handling contractor to the party that requested its services, thereby excluding any direct action against a subcontractor on a quasi-default basis.

In the case before the Cour de cassation, a cargo being transported from Honduras to France suffered a break in the cold chain. The insurer, subrogated to the buyer's rights, sued the maritime carrier for compensation.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the maritime carrier's action against the sub-handler on the grounds of prescription. It applied the three-month period provided for in articles L. 5422-18 and L. 5422-25 of the Transport Code, considering that this action fell within the scope of the contractual relations governed by these provisions.

The Court of Cassation upheld this decision but modified the legal basis. The Court considers that the maritime carrier, as the project owner, can bring a contractual action against the main handler, with whom it has a direct contractual relationship. On the other hand, it cannot take direct action against the sub-handler, who has no contractual link with it.

If the carrier tried to circumvent this limitation by invoking quasi-default liability, the Court pointed out that the contractual regime takes precedence in this type of contractual chain. Consequently, any action had to be brought against the main handler, not the sub-handler.

Finally, the argument that the five-year limitation period in article 2224 of the Civil Code should apply was also rejected. The Court confirmed that the action, although inadmissible on legal grounds, would in any event have been time-barred under the rules specific to transport law.

https://www.courdecassation.fr/decision/6759324cdb845b438efc6e14
 
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