More than 10 years since the death of one of the masters
working for CMA CGM, a French court was reported to have upheld a decision by a
lower court which fined Marseille-based shipper CMA CGM after convicting it of
corporate manslaughter, contributing to the captain’s suicide.
Agence France-Presse reported that it saw a copy of the
verdict from the appellate court on February 8th, two weeks after
the final verdict in the case was handed down.
The court reportedly rejected an appeal from CMA CGM.
Arising from a December 2020 verdict which found that the company contributed
to the suicide. The lower court fined CMA CGM €100,000. The appeal court ruled
that the lower court “justified its decision and made an exact application of
the laws.”
In December 2010 CMA CGM containership Laperouse collided
with small coastal general cargo ship Thebe in the North Sea off the coast of
the Netherlands. The 13,000 teu containership hit and badly damaged the 2,500
dwt Thebe, which was badly damaged but remained afloat. With the assistance of
three rescue vessels the Thebe made it to port safely. The Laperouse was
undamaged and was permitted to continue its voyage.
An investigation laid the blame for the collision with
one of the containership’s officers, who resigned from CMA CGM. The captain,
Philippe Deruy, was cleared of all responsibility for the accident. He was
permitted to stay with his vessel, but CMA CGM then assigned him to train a
replacement. CMA CGM ordered Deruy to leave his command when the vessel reached
the Suez Canal. He was given what the court found was an “ill-defined post
ashore.”
On February 14th 2011, the captain hanged
himself in the basement of his apartment building in Nice, France, less than
two months after the collision. During the court case it was reported that he
wrote in his suicide note “I don’t have a future, and that, to me, is
unbearable.”
A year later his mother, sisters and brother filed a
complaint and the Marseille Public Prosecutor’s Office opened a preliminary
investigation into the death.
During the original court case it was revealed that there
was an internal struggle within CMA CGM after the accident, with the majority
of the senior executives believing that the captain should be retained in his
position. However, Jacques Saade, CEO of CMA CGM, and the general manager of
the shipping subsidiary were reported to have been in favour of dismissing
Deruy after the collision.
The court found in 2020 that CMA CGM had breached its
obligation to ensure the safety and protection of the physical and mental health
of Deruy. The process leading up to his dismissal created uncertainty, with
cancelled interviews, no timetable, and a lack of process following the
company’s policies.
The court said that disciplinary sanctions were handed
down without following following procedures during what the court said was a
struggle for influence within the staff of the company.
The court ordered the publication of its 2020 judgment.
Media reports in France said that CMA CGM settled a civil case. The company
also later placed a plaque honouring the captain for his actions in preventing
a previous accident in Tangier.
