Maritime Law: Bills of Lading

Maritime law
Bills of Lading
- Juliee Sharma
Meaning
• A bill of lading in shipping is a record of traded goods
which have been received on board. It is a document
that establishes an agreement between a shipper and
a transportation company for the transportation of
goods. Transportation Company (carrier) issues these
records to the shipper.
• A bill of lading indicates a particular carrier through

which the goods have been placed to their final
destination and the conditions for transporting the
shipment to its final destination.
The Importance of Bills of Lading
• A bill of lading, therefore, is a very important issue

when making shipments to move the cargo or freight
from one point to the other. On one hand it is a
contract between a carrier and shipper for the
transportation of goods and on the other hand, it
serves as a receipt issued by a carrier to the shipper.
• Hence, the bill of lading is considered a legal

document which provides all the vital details to the
shipper and the carrier to conveniently process the
freight shipment through different maritime countries
and invoice it correctly.
Negotiable and Non-negotiable BOL
• Negotiable bill of lading: In this type of bill, a clear instruction is
provided to make the delivery of the goods to anyone having the
possession of the original copy of the bill, which itself signifies the
title and control of the freight. In this type of bill, the buyer/
receiver or his/her agent has to acquire and present an original
copy of the bill of lading at the discharge port. In the absence of
original bill copy, the freight will not be released.
• Non-negotiable bill: This type of bill of lading fixes a specific

consignee/name of the receiver to whom the freights will be
shipped and delivered. It, however, does not itself serve the
ownership of the goods. Under this type of bill, the assigned
receiver/ buyers can claim the cargo by confirming their identity.
Purpose of Bill of Lading:
• The bill of lading document is meant to act as a transport document
enacting as the evidence of the contract of carriage of the goods. A
negotiable bill of lading has the following legal qualities:
• It acts as a piece of evidence for the carriage contract containing

the terms and condition under which the goods transportation will
be carried out
• It represents as a receipt which endorses that the carrier has

received the cargo as per the contract and the goods are received in
good condition.
• It provides the right for the delivery to be made to the possessor.
• It can also be treated as document of title.

Bill of lading as Contract Of Carriage:
• The contract between the carrier and the shipper is already
created before issuing the bill of lading when the cargo is
loaded on the ship. This is done to safeguard the shipper in
case the cargo is damaged before loading it on board the
vessel and to help the shipper in the claim process. For the
carrier and the consignee, the bill of lading will act as the
actual contract of carriage.
• The popularly used conventions and rules which covers the

contract of carriage for carrying goods by sea :
• – Hamburg Rules
• – Rotterdam Rules
• – Hague Rules
• – Hague – Visby Rules
Contents of Freight Bill of Lading:
• The complete name and official address of the receiver and the shipper.
• The Purchase orders or special reference/ invoice numbers which helps the
shipper and the consignee to release the goods for pickup or accepted at
delivery
• The date of the pickup which acts as a reference to track the freight
• The details of the item including the number of unit being shipper, weight
and dimension of the product, along with the nature of the cargo being
carried, i.e. dangerous goods etc.
• If the goods are hazardous, Department of Transportation hazardous
material designation is tagged, and it is cited on the bill to follow special
rules and requirements when shipping
• The details of the packaging used such as crates, palates, cartons, pills,
drums etc.
• Any special notes or instruction for the carrier.
The Indian Bills of lading (BOL) Act, 1856
ARTICLE 1: The property passes by reason of consignment or
endorsement and the right to sue passes with it. Every
consignee and endorsee are vested with the rights of suit, and
be subject to the same liabilities in respect of such goods as if
the contract contained in the BOL had been made with
himself.
(CONSIGNEE: The entity who is the buyer and generally the
receiver of the freight shipment; ENDORSEE: The person to
whom the bill of lading is transferred by endorsement. )
Article 2: article 1 shall not prejudice the right of stoppage in

transit or claims for freight.
Article 3: BOL in the hands of consignee or endorsee is a

conclusive evidence of shipment as against the master, etc.

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Maritime law

• A bill of lading indicates a particular carrier through

• A bill of lading, therefore, is a very important issue

• Hence, the bill of lading is considered a legal

• Non-negotiable bill: This type of bill of lading fixes a specific

• It acts as a piece of evidence for the carriage contract containing

• It represents as a receipt which endorses that the carrier has

• It provides the right for the delivery to be made to the possessor.

• It can also be treated as document of title.

• The popularly used conventions and rules which covers the

Article 2: article 1 shall not prejudice the right of stoppage in

Article 3: BOL in the hands of consignee or endorsee is a

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