REPORT ON THE PROPOSED BILL OF LADING AND ANALOGOUS SHIPPING DOCUMENT BILL 2014

In its Proposal for a Bills of Lading and Analogous Shipping Document Bill, the Bar Council dealt with the issue of transfer of rights and liabilities under the contract of carriage by sea. The Bar Council explained that judicial interpretation of the Bill of Lading Act 1855 has left many holders of bills of lading without a right of recourse against the carrier and also to extend such rights to holders of other shipping documents which are being used in the trade. The Bar Council recommended that the new legislation be modelled after the UK Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992 (COGSA 1992), which was enacted following an extensive study and recommendation by the English and Scottish Law Commissions on the issues relevant to the transfer of contractual rights and liablities in the carriage of goods by sea.