Legal
EMISA’s Legal Team consists of legal professionals, which have extensive and proven experience in our field of interest, with particular reference to digitalisation, the right to repair, competition and regulatory law in the marine business sector. They handle legal guidance for the members as well as working on influencing the legal framework.
EMISA acts mainly by means of lobbying, promotional and consultancy activities
- Right to Repair – e.g. IP-rights, liability, insurance
- The shipowner should be in control and able to decide freely
- Ensure fair competition on a level playing field
- Summary of Intellectual Property rights
- Potential liabilities and pitfalls
- Digitalisation
- Access to data and functions
- Ownership of data on digital platforms
- Interoperability and compatibility of digital platforms
- Real-time communication with the ship via remote monitoring of functionalities of the engine and remote technical interventions (bi-directional)
- Environment & Marine Shipping – aftermarket related
- Emission regulations such as NOx, SOx, CO2, methane
- Alternative and sustainable fuels
- Sustainable blue economy
- Good reputation independent marine shipping aftermarket
- High quality of spare parts from independent manufacturers and suppliers
- High quality of service support from independent service providers
- Cyber security – focus distortion of competition on aftermarket
- Importance of cyber security vs unnecessary distortion of competition
- Regular check on relevant legislation and proposals
- Update on future legislation and trends
Points of contact:
- Shipowners and their Associations – e.g. ECSA (European Community Shipowners’ Associations)
- Classification Societies – impartiality, technical requirements, distortion of competition
- Regional and international organisations e.g. SEA EUROPE (Shipyards’ & Maritime Equipment Association of Europe)
- Internal Affairs EMISA & Members
Team
“With over 20 year experience in Competition and EU law as Dutch lawyer, located in Brussels, I like to help EMISA achieve its aim of maintaining a fair and free competitive level playing field for independent operators (worldwide). Amongst other things, we are checking which legal proposals and initiatives might be relevant for EMISA in combination with ongoing new technical developments in the marine sector (e.g. digitalization, sustainability). Together with EMISA-members we are considering the potential impact for their businesses and then we decide on a strategy. Often when it is – for various reasons – difficult or impossible for a single company to act, EMISA can.”
Marije Osse
“As the Secretary General of EMISA, it is my task to manage the daily activities of the Association, recruit new members and work as part of the Legal Team on questions from members and lobbying opportunities on the national, EU and IMO level. EMISA is unique in its field, as it gives a voice to companies in the independent aftermarket, most of which are SMEs. Any future legislation affecting the marine industry should be made having in mind the position of these companies and the economic benefits they bring to their customers and the industry as a whole. Otherwise, the marine industry runs the risk of monopolisation, lack of choice and stifled innovation.”
Emil Rusinov
Lobby partners
Our Legal Team focuses mainly on working on issues concerning the following organisations and stakeholders:
International Maritime Organisation (IMO)
The International Maritime Organisation (headquartered in London) is a specialised agency of the United Nations (UN), responsible for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine and atmospheric pollution by ships.
That makes the IMO a consensus organisation. For EMISA, the most important parts of the IMO are the Marine Environmental Protection Committee and the Sub-committee on Pollution Prevention and Response. Our main purpose is to interact with organisations that have a voice within the PPR and MEPC, so as to influence current and future legislation to ensure that this does not have anti-competitive impacts or reduce the freedom of companies to innovate and provide new solutions in a timely achievable manner.
European Union (EU)
The European Union is an international organisation that governs the economic, social, and security policies of its 27 member states. The EU is an important party for EMISA since their policies can influences global policies, making the EU relevant for our non-EU members.
European Commission (EC)
While the EU is a regional organisation, our work with the European Commission has a positive impact on both EU and non-EU members.
We follow the work of the EC closely and identify any possibilities for providing feedback on behalf of our members on relevant topics (e.g. public consultations on the EU VBER revision, Data Act, MRV Regulation, Eco-design Regulation, among others).
We also follow the work of specific Directorates General (DG) of the European Comission, namely:
- DG Environment
- DG Competition
- DG Mobility and Transport
Relevant regional and international organisations
Regional and international organisations provide a forum for parties and stakeholders in the industry to discuss and decide on relevant issues. They also represent their members in global and regional fora such as the IMO and the European Union.
We are interested in the activities of several organisations dealing with projects related to competition, environmental protection, and standard-setting. We come in contact with them when relevant issues arise. Some of these include:
Classification Societies
Classification societies are private entities providing and maintaining technical standards of the construction and operation of vessels. They have two roles:
- Working for the own commercial interest as private entities by classifying ships and checking if they fulfil standards.
- Working as Recognised Organisations (ROs), which check ships’ compliance with national and international regulations on behalf of the Flag State in a quasi-public role
Our members inform us of issues they encounter when dealing with classification societies. This is especially important because of the statements issued by three major classification societies. These statementsy require independent companies, looking to obtain a Type Approval Certificate, to ask the OEM for such approval. However,The fact that often times the OEM and the company in question are direct competitors, meaning there is no incentive for the OEM to provide such approval.
Shipowners
Shipowners are private entities or individuals who own and operate merchant vessels.
In the primary and aftermarket of diesel engine spare parts in the marine industry, shipowners are essentially the end customer who bears the costs.
That is why shipowners and their support are a crucial part of the puzzle when it comes to preserving the existence of independent companies. We aim to raise their awareness on the common misconceptions regarding the quality, technical knowledge, and service of independent companies as well as issues related to competition and the right to repair.
For EMISA, relevant shipowners’ organisations are the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the European Community Shipowners’ Association (ECSA). We follow their work and monitor the topics that are relevant for them.