Legal and Risk Analysis of the Ever Given Suez Canal Incident

School of Law and Commerce

Module: MAR7004 Maritime Law and Risk Management Assessment 1: Case Study Analysis Weighting: 50% Word Count: 3,500 words (+/- 10%) Submission Deadline: Friday, 23 January 2026, 16:00 GMT Submission Method: Turnitin portal on VLE.

Assessment Task

You are required to produce a detailed case study analysis of the 2021 Suez Canal obstruction by the container vessel Ever Given. Your analysis must critically evaluate the incident from the dual perspectives of maritime law and operational risk management.

The core of your analysis must dissect the legal and commercial aftermath of the grounding. The objective is not to narrate the event, but to deconstruct its consequences through established legal doctrines and risk frameworks.

Your analysis must address these specific points:

1. General Average (GA): Analyse the justification for, and the process of, the declaration of General Average. Evaluate the implications for cargo owners, insurers, and the shipowner. Discuss the complexities of the GA adjustment process in a case of this magnitude.
2. Salvage Law: Examine the salvage operation conducted. Critically discuss the legal basis for the salvors’ claim, referencing the principles of the Lloyd’s Open Form (LOF) and Article 13 of the 1989 Salvage Convention regarding the criteria for a salvage award.
3. Contractual Disputes: Evaluate the contractual chaos that ensued. Focus on the legal doctrines of frustration and force majeure as they apply to contracts of carriage (bills of lading) and charterparties affected by the blockage.
4. Risk Management Failure and Mitigation: Deconstruct the incident as a failure of risk management. Identify the key operational risks that culminated in the grounding. Further, analyse the post-incident industry responses, including changes in insurance underwriting for mega-vessels, revised navigational protocols, and the debate on vessel size versus canal capacity.

Learning Outcomes Assessed

• LO2: Apply principles of international maritime law to complex real-world scenarios.
• LO3: Critically evaluate the effectiveness of risk management strategies in maritime operations.
• LO4: Analyse the legal and financial liabilities arising from major maritime casualties.
• LO5: Synthesise legal and commercial sources to construct a coherent and evidence-based argument.

Marking Criteria

• Application of Legal Principles (40%): Correct and detailed application of relevant maritime law concepts (GA, salvage, contract law) to the facts of the case.
• Risk Management Analysis (30%): Depth of analysis concerning risk identification, causality, and evaluation of subsequent mitigation strategies.
• Research and Evidence (20%): Quality and range of academic, legal, and industry sources used to substantiate the analysis. Accuracy of Harvard referencing.
• Structure and Clarity (10%): Logical organisation, academic rigour, and precision of language.

Peer-Reviewed References

1. Baughen, S. (2021) ‘The Ever Given: a giant problem?’, Journal of International Maritime Law, 27(3), pp. 191–197.
2. Chircop, A. (2022) ‘The grounding of the container ship Ever Given in the Suez Canal: issues of international law’, The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law, 37(1), pp. 166–183. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1163/15718085-bja10078.
3. Ko, Y.-C. (2023) ‘Study on the risk assessment of ships navigating in suez canal’, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 11(3), p. 556. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse11030556.
4. Mulligan, E. (2021) ‘The Suez Canal blockage: an analysis of the legal and insurance-related issues’, WMU Journal of Maritime Affairs, 20(3), pp. 359–373. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13437-021-00246-1.