Marine Liability Act

Marginal note:Responsibility of Administrator

• 89 (1) On receipt of a claim filed under subsection 88(3), the Administrator shall

  • (a) if the Administrator considers the action appropriate for the proper administration of the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund, direct payment of the amount of the loss alleged in the claim or otherwise agreed on between the Administrator and the claimant; or

  • (b) in any other case, transmit the claim to the Minister.

• Marginal note:Appointment of assessors

  (2) On receipt of a claim from the Administrator under paragraph (1)(b), the Minister shall,

  • (a) after consulting with the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, the Minister of the Environment and the Administrator, appoint as assessors one or more persons not employed in the public service, as defined in subsection 3(1) of the Public Service Superannuation Act; and

  • (b) fix the remuneration and expenses to be paid to the person or persons while they are acting as assessors and authorize the Administrator to direct payment of the remuneration and expenses to them.

• Marginal note:Assessment of loss

  (3) For the purpose of assessing a loss alleged by a claimant under section 88, an assessor or assessors, in this section referred to as the “assessor”,

  • (a) after giving reasonable notice to the Administrator and the claimant, shall meet with the Administrator and the claimant or their representatives;

  • (b) may receive and consider any written or oral evidence submitted to the assessor by or on behalf of the Administrator or the claimant, whether or not the evidence would be admissible before a court; and

  • (c) in so doing, has all the powers of a commissioner under Part I of the Inquiries Act.

• Marginal note:Report to Minister

  (4) The assessor shall, within 60 days after the assessor’s appointment or within any longer period that is agreed to by the Minister, report to the Minister whether, in his or her opinion, the following requirements have been met:

  • (a) the loss alleged by the claimant has been established;

  • (b) the loss resulted from the discharge of oil from a ship; and

  • (c) the loss is not recoverable otherwise under this Part.

• Marginal note:Amount of loss

  (5) If the assessor reports that the requirements of paragraphs (4)(a) to (c) have been met, the report must set out the amount of the loss as assessed by the assessor.

• Marginal note:Payment of assessed loss out of Fund

  (6) On receipt of the report, the Minister shall without delay forward a copy of it to the claimant and to the Administrator, who shall direct payment to the claimant out of the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund of an amount equal to the amount, if any, of the assessed loss set out in the report.