A Study On Nature Of Time Charter Party

This paper is divided into five sections. The first section is the main discussion of significance in the theories and judicial practice to study the nature of Time Charter Party. Firstly, this paper introduces "the contract for the carriage of goods theory", "the lease of property contract theory" and "mixed innominated contracts theory" respectively, and then analyzes problems brought out by the dispute on the nature of Time Charter Party when the charpter IV "Charter Parties"of the Maritime Code of the People's Republic of China was enacted. On the basis of analyzing above problems, educed the legislative significance. Finally, introducing the case in the judicial practice to illustrate that it can avoid applying wrong law by solving the dispute problem about the nature of Time Charter Party.In Sectionâ…¡and Sectionâ…¢, By comparing the subject,object and content of Time Charter Party with the contract of the carriage of goods and the Bareboat Charter Party, this paper makes a conclusion that Time Charter Party is not a kind of contract for the carriage of goods, but a kind of the lease of property contract. Meanwhile, according to civil code and shipment practice, this paper discusses in the period of time charter whether the occupancy of ship is transferred or not.In Sectionâ…£, the paper is concerned with Time Charter Party is whether a mixed innominated contracts or not. A mixed innominated contracts is one type of the innominated contracts. This classification of the nominated contracts and innominated contract is relative. Firstly, The author thinks that in Maritime Code, Time Charter Party is a kind of nominated contract. But in contract law or civil code, it belongs to innominated contract which consists of the contract of carriage of goods by sea and the lease of property contract or other type of nominated contracts in the Specific Provisions of Contract Law.And then the author thinks that Time Charter Party should apply theory of absorbtion on legal application, the lease of property contract absorbs other types of nominated contracts. The last chapter of this paper is based on the theory analysis of the second and the third part, the author gives suggestions for the nature of Time Charter Party. The auther thinks Time Charter Party belongs to a kind of lease of property contract in nature. But because Time Charter Party is regulated by The Special Law--Maritime Code, and its lease is ship.Therefore, these characters make Time Charter Party itself and its legal application are particular. For example, all the regulations about rights and duties brought out by the occupancy of lease in lease of property contract are not applicable to Time Charter Party.