The Board of MYBA The worldwide Yachting Association responds to a recent article on SuperyachtNews about the newly launched MYBA Charter Agreement.

The MYBA charter agreement has been in widespread use for approaching 40 years. Other forms of yacht charter contracts are freely available, and the MYBA charter agreement is much imitated, but it remains popular because it was specifically developed for the superyacht charter market by experienced industry brokers and has been revised periodically to ensure that it remains current.

The most recent revision is a case in point. It is the product of years of work by the MYBA charter committee, comprising experienced Central Agency and retail professionals from brokerages large and small, and assisted by not one but two sets of experienced superyacht law firms. As such every effort has been taken to ensure that the current form strikes the correct balance and takes account of modern trends.

One such trend is the impact of governmental and federal legislation concerning anti-money laundering, sanctions, data protection and transparency. A deliberate choice was made by the authors of the new form to assist users by including a minimum level of expected regulatory adherence. To suggest that this is inappropriate is absurd. Everyone involved in the conclusion of charters must( or should) confront such issues on a daily basis and the inclusion of the new clauses provides a welcome framework for this.

As to specific amendments to the more traditional clauses in the MYBA agreement, these have been the subject of vigorous healthy debate and they represent a balanced view as to how the charter may operate more fairly. These amendments respond to very many comments made by charter users both on and outside the Charter Committee.

It is suggested by Dr Christoph Shliessmann, that MYBA is a “monopoly”, a “gated community”, a “de facto contractual diktat”. As a general point, it is to be regretted that such a soi-disant “experienced maritime lawyer” chooses to vent his feelings in such a histrionic fashion.

None of these accusations is true. MYBA and YACHTFOLIO membership is freely available to those who meet its published criteria. Other charter forms are available and are widely used. Nor is the form itself proscriptive. Parties can introduce their own special conditions and almost invariably do so.

Dr Schliessmann also rails against the effects of EU Consumer law and its effect on charters, and touts an addendum whereby he says owners may mitigate the risks of the impact of this legislation. We should make it quite clear that his addendum, which he sets out in full, is NOT part of the MYBA charter agreement and is NOT endorsed by us. Nor presumably can MYBA be blamed for EU legislation!

As to the few other points made, he complains about the basis on which brokers hold charter funds and the force majeure clause, but these provisions have been subject to only minimal change. The inclusion of an Entire Agreement clause is indeed to cut down on unnecessary legal disputes based on pre-contract negotiations; this was thought to be a helpful inclusion for all concerned, whether charterers, owners or brokers.

There has been a widespread acceptance of the 2025 MYBA Charter agreement of which we are proud. We welcome a healthy debate about its terms as the form is under constant scrutiny not just by industry professionals but also by the end users, namely charterers and yacht Owners alike. But we deplore cheap shots being taken at it and us where the observations are wrong, harmful and of questionable motivation.

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MYBA The Worldwide Yachting Association

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