5/1/2013 2:19:08 PM by Andrew Alberti

May 2013 - Rules Changes IV

Last week I started to talk about exoneration in rule 21.  I will continue this month.  Rule 21 is a new rule combining rule 18.5 and 20.2.  Up until 2008, the preamble to Section C used to state that, “To the extent that a Section C rule conflicts with a rule in Section A or B, the Section C rule takes precedence.”  When the mark and obstruction rules were rewritten (again) in 2009, the wording of the Section C rule “taking precedence” was replaced with the concept of a boat “being exonerated” if she is entitled to room and in taking it, breaks one of the other rules.  There were two separate rules, one covering the Mark-Room rule (rule 18) and one covering the Room to Tack at an Obstruction rule (rule 20).