ABSTRACT
Court or the Admiralty Court. The fi rst is the collision statement of case, formerly known as the ‘preliminary act’. This is a document containing various questions relating to the collision, for example: the ships involved; the weather; the course steered; and the angle of contact. 1 Under CPR Pt 61.4(5), every party must fi le a completed statement of case in form Adm 3 within two months of the defendant fi ling an acknowledgment of service. 2 The answers contained in the statement of case will constitute admissions of fact for the purpose of the litigation. The second is the role of the assessors, who are usually chosen from the ‘elder brethren’ of Trinity House. They sit with the judge to advise on nautical matters. They cannot be cross-examined and their role substantially restricts the right of the parties to call their own expert nautical evidence.
