What are the legal implications of operational efficiency, and how can the inefficient artefacts of shipping contracts be phased out while driving uptake of specific clauses that encourage the transparency, cooperation, and benefit sharing that allow for more efficient operation of ships? This paper explores this question as part of a series that examines the undervalued opportunity presented by operational efficiencies to reduce shipping emissions in the short term and pave the way for long-term decarbonisation solutions. The learnings presented here have emerged from a series of meetings and workshops gathering perspectives from experts across the maritime value chain—shipowners, operators, charterers, ports, and NGOs—as part of the Short Term Actions Taskforce. Other papers in the series provide an overview of the issue, and dive deeper into the identified solutions and enablers: the role of data, and the role of pilots.