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34Maritime Reporter & Engineering News vention that extends the same protection of limited liability to class that currentlyis enjoyed by every other sector of the in- dustry. The current situation is untenable and grossly unfair. It means that class is constantly exposed to the risk of ruinous law suits stemming from simple negli- gence in providing a service for which the fee is miniscule compared to theclaims made against it. One has only to look at the Prestige case to see what I amtalking about. An incident with this ves- sel resulted in a 9 ½ year legal battle, which the courts at long last have ruled in our favor. I could never explain the pressure and expense that a US $2 billion dollar lawsuit puts on our organization and on me personally. The issue is further complicated when class is acting as aRecognized Organization on behalf of flag States. The vast majority of flag States extend sovereign immunity to the class society when it is acting as the ad-ministration?s agent. But a small and growing number do not. Once again, this exposes class to potentially unlimited li- ability when conducting a simple regula- tory inspection or ISM-related audit on avessel in one of these registers. Fortu- nately, to date, most court rulings have been favorable to class but there is only limited precedence that have been estab- lished in any one jurisdiction let alone in- ternational agreement on this subject. Ifclass is to continue to act as the inde-pendent arbiter of maritime safety stan-dards, it must be granted the samesecurity of protection from unwarranted and unfair unlimited liability that is af- forded its partners within the safetyregime. Looking back at your time with ABS, what do you count as your greatest suc- cess, or mission accomplished that you find most gratifying? What has been your biggest disappointment and why? I have always viewed my role within class as a custodian. When I was a field surveyor, I was a custodian of safety. As Chairman of ABS I have been the cus- todian of a venerable organization that exists because it serves the public inter- est. In my period as Chairman of IACS, I viewed my role as the custodian of the classification sector with the responsibil- ity to protect and enhance the role andreputation of all of the member societies.In each instance I have attempted to ful- fill those responsibilities to the best of my abilities. Any disappointment has been short-lived as, with patience and experi- ence, every problem can be solved and any setback can be overcome. As my time at ABS nears its end, I can take com- fort from the fact that the organization is internationally respected, a technicalleader, financially sound and recognized as one of the premier classification soci- eties serving the marine and offshore in- dustries. But I take the greatest sense of accomplishment from the knowledge that its future has been entrusted to a new generation of talented, committed indi-viduals at every level, from the executive management team to the engineering andsurvey staff to those who deliver the es- sential administrative services that pro- vide the foundation for all our activities. I cannot pretend to know what the future holds other than that change will be aconstant. ABS has a history stretching over 150 years. That is a testimony to our ability to adapt to change, to weather ad-versity, and to provide a service that in- dustry values and relies on. It is my hope that the next 150 years will be equally il- lustrious, and I am confident that ABS is ready and willing to define maritime clas- sification in the future. somervilleTHEN(Left): Shipyard construction and survey in the early 1970 ... ... AND NOW(Below): Shipyard construction and survey today. One advantage of age is that it provides perspective. Difficult as the current market may be, it is not yet anywhere near the disastrous conditions that all sectors of the mar-itime industry faced in the late ?70s through the ?80s when we were sending ships to scrapyards right from delivery. Extending innovation and research development beyond its corporate headquarters in Houston, ABS has established dedicated technology centers in Singapore, Canada, Brazil, China and Korea. MR#10 (34-41):MR Template 9/28/2012 1:36 PM Page 34