ABSTRACT
Oil pollution is, from the practitioner's point of view, perhaps even more than from the student's viewpoint, of paramount importance in the maritime world. Oil pollution as a problem was not seriously discussed internationally until the mid-1950s when an international conference was held to discuss prevention of pollution of the sea by oil. The way oil pollution damage is defined varies according to which of the International Conventions or voluntary agreements is applicable to a particular situation. The group Clubs, throughout the history of major oil pollution disasters, have heavily resisted paying out damages on the basis of harm done to natural resources. Sweden has adopted the Civil Liability Convention by way of an Oil Liability Act which provides that a shipowner shall be free of liability if he can show that the damage was caused by the fault or neglect of any Swedish or foreign authority.
