The Revised Charter. The Executive Secretary

On 12 December 2025, the Main Department of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation for St Petersburg and the Leningrad Region registered the new edition of the Association’s Charter, adopted at the general meeting on 17 November 2025.

At the heart of the changes lies the establishment of the Executive Secretary position at RUMLA. Alexey Malakhovskiy was elected to this position unanimously. It was him who has served as the executive editor of the Maritime Law journal since July of last year. Russian lawyers know Alexey very well from years of work at the leading online legal media Pravo.ru. From 2016 until 2025, he made his way up from junior correspondent to assistant chief editor at that company.

The Maritime Law Association has two categories of membership:

Member of the Association–has all the rights and obligations under the Charter and has the voting right (to make decisions) at general meetings of the Association’s members, and pays the full annual membership fee.

Associate Member–a form of participation that doesn’t fall under the category of membership as defined by Federal Law No. 7-FZ of 12 January 1996 “On Non-Profit Organisations” yet allows for regular interaction with RUMLA. Associate members may receive all editions of the Maritime Law journal and The Merchant Shipping Code of the Russian Federation for free, participate in the Association’s conferences, seminars and webinars, and access to information on the activities of the Comité Maritime International (CMI). The entrance and annual fees for this category of members are RUB 5,000.

Only citizens of the Russian Federation are eligible to become members of our Association. Foreign nationals may subscribe to our newsletters without paying membership fees.

Particular attention should also be given to clause 3.2 of the new version of the Charter, which provides that the Association is active in a wide range of areas, from advancing and improving Russian sector-specific legislation to supporting educational programmes in maritime law. RUMLA’s other priority objectives include:

– Providing members of the Association and other parties with advisory and information services on matters of private and public international maritime law;

– Representing and promoting the shared interests of the Association’s members, including those of a professional kind, in matters of maritime law, creating and maintaining a professional forum for dialogue and the exchange of expertise among maritime law specialists, including those from abroad; and enhancing the standing of maritime law and merchant shipping;

– Drafting legal opinions, including those intended for submission to state bodies and to Russian and international courts, on matters of private and public international maritime law and related areas of law, for Russian and foreign courts, arbitral tribunals, state authorities, organisations and individuals;

– Developing standards and rules for maritime commerce, together with standard-form documentation, including contracts, bills of lading, charterparties, shipping rules and standards, rules governing specific aspects of shipping, liability clauses, and other documents;

– Contributing to programmes, films and other audiovisual productions aligned with the Association’s aims, and producing and distributing commemorative and other souvenir items relating to the Association’s activities;

– Engaging with international organisations, associations and professional networks in the fields of maritime law and merchant shipping, promoting the international exchange of expertise and round-table discussions; and holding membership in the Comité Maritime International (CMI).

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RUMLA Telegram Channel

A further significant achievement for RUMLA in the first quarter of 2026 was the launch of its official Telegram channel. There, we publish not only Association news but also other useful information for those interested in maritime law: industry digests, well-known expert opinions and analytical reviews of case law. In fewer than three months, around 300 people have subscribed to our channel. We invite you to join us too. ■