New Jason Clause

What it does

A New Jason clause concerns general average, the principle under which parties to a maritime adventure share the cost of extraordinary sacrifices or expenditure made to save the common venture. The clause preserves the owner's right to claim general average contributions from cargo interests even where the peril that prompted the sacrifice arose from negligence in the navigation or management of the ship.

It exists because, under some legal systems, an owner might be denied general average contribution if the danger resulted from its servants' negligence, even where that negligence is an excepted matter for liability purposes. The clause, originally developed for trades touching such jurisdictions, restores the owner's entitlement to contribution by securing the cargo's agreement in advance, aligning general average rights with the liability exceptions.

Commercial effect

The clause protects the owner's ability to recover from cargo its proper share of general average, which can be substantial after a serious incident involving sacrifice or salvage. Without it, in jurisdictions that link contribution to fault, the owner could bear the whole cost of a general average act even though the underlying navigational fault is an excepted peril, leaving a gap between its liability defences and its contribution rights.

By closing that gap, the clause ensures the general average regime operates as the parties expect, with losses shared across the venture. It is read alongside the exceptions and paramount provisions, since it is the interaction between the liability exceptions and the law of general average that creates the need for the clause in the first place.

Owner's perspective

The owner wants the New Jason clause to ensure that its right to general average contribution from cargo is not lost merely because the peril arose from a navigational fault that is otherwise an excepted matter. It relies on the clause to keep the general average sharing intact, so that it is not left bearing the entire cost of a sacrifice made for the common safety.

The owner sees the clause as closing a recognised gap and aligning its contribution rights with its liability defences. It wants it included in trades where the applicable law might otherwise deny contribution on grounds of fault, so that the general average regime delivers the cost-sharing it is designed to provide.

Charterer's perspective

The charterer and cargo interests accept general average as a long-standing principle of shared maritime risk, and the New Jason clause as the means of keeping that sharing effective where the law might otherwise disturb it. They recognise that contribution is part of the bargain of carriage, balanced by the liability defences the owner gives up elsewhere.

The charterer is mindful that the clause requires cargo to contribute even where navigational fault was involved, so it ensures its cargo insurance responds to general average contributions. It treats the clause as a normal feature of the carriage terms rather than an unusual imposition, and it factors the general average exposure into its insurance arrangements.

Negotiation points

• Whether a New Jason clause is needed given the law and trades involved.
• How the clause aligns the owner's contribution rights with the liability exceptions.
• The interaction with the applicable general average rules and adjustment.
• Confirmation that cargo insurance responds to general average contributions.

Common variations

• A standard New Jason clause preserving contribution despite navigational fault.
• A general average clause referring adjustment to recognised international rules.
• A clause combining general average and salvage contribution provisions.
• A New Jason clause included for trades touching jurisdictions that link contribution to fault.