Section 39: Liability of ship owners, companies and officers.

(1) Where an offence is committed under this Act or regulations made under it by a vessel, a ship owning company or a body of persons
(a) in the case of a vessel, the shipping company responsible for the vessel or the captain of the vessel shall be deemed to have committed the offence.
(b) in the case of a ship owning company or a body corporate other than a partnership, every director or an officer of the company or body shall also be deemed to have committed the offence ;
(c) in the case of a partnership every partner or officer of that body shall also be deemed to have committed that offence.
(2) Any activity engaged in on behalf of a body corporate or natural person by a director, officer or agent of the body, or an officer or agent of the person, within the scope of his or her actual or apparent authority is to be taken, for the purposes of a prosecution for an offence under this Act, to have been engaged in also by the body or person.
(3) An officer may be prosecuted and convicted of an offence under subsection (1) whether or not the body corporate has been prosecuted for or convicted of the offence
(4) In this section an officer in relation to an offence committed by a body corporate, means-
(a) a director of the body corporate or other person however described, responsible for the direction, management and control of the body corporate ; or
(b) any other person who is concerned in, or takes part in the management of the body corporate and whose responsibilities include duties with respect to the matters giving rise to the offence.
(5) A reference in this section to director of a body corporate is to be read as including a reference to a member of a body corporate incorporated under the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
(6) A reference in this section to engage in an activity is to be read as including a reference to failing or refusing to engage in the activity.