First, the positive content of the present bill of lading, the shipping companies established by the bill of lading although the format is not exactly the same, but its content is similar. Are presented below:

1. Necessary to record items

According to China's "Maritime" 73rd stipulates that the bill of lading positive, in general, including the following:

(1) the goods name, logo, the number of packages or pieces, weight or volume, as well as the transport of dangerous goods of dangerous nature of the description:

(Description of the goods, mark, number of packages or piece, weight or quantity, and a statement, if applicable, as to the dangerous nature of the goods);

(2) The carrier's name and principal place of business (Name and principal place of business of the carrier);

(3) the ship's name (Name of the ship);

(4) The name of the shipper (Name of the shipper);

(5) The name of the consignee (Name of the consignee);

(6), the port of loading and the port of loading the date of receipt of the goods (Port of loading and the date on Which the good were taken over by the carrier at the port of loading);

(7) discharge port (Port of discharge);

(8) added to the multimodal transport bill of lading and delivery of goods to receive the goods location location (Place where the goods were taken over and the place where the goods are to be

delivered in case of a multimodal transport bill of lading);

(9) issue of the bill of lading date, location and number of copies (Date and place of issue of the bill of loading and the number

of originals issued);

(10) the payment of freight (Payment of freight);

(11) the carrier or his representative signature (Signature of the carrier or of a person acting on his behalf).

The provisions of the bill of lading the lack of one or several of the preceding paragraph, and does not affect the nature of the bill of lading, but the bill of lading shall comply with the provisions of the Act 第七十一条.

Above provisions Note: The absence of one or more, and does not affect the legal status of the bill of lading, but it must be consistent with the definition of maritime law on bills of lading and functional requirements. In addition to inland multimodal bill of lading issued by the third name of the ship; the issue of the multimodal transport bill of lading bill of lading when receiving freight location and the location of delivery of the goods, as well as the payment of freight these three, all other content is a must for 8 small, the current bill of lading shipping companies to develop their content with this is similar to.

2. International conventions relating to the bill of lading provisions of the necessary items recorded in

Under the "Hague Rules" third through article: After receipt of the goods, the carrier or the master or agent of the carrier, the shipper's request shall be issued to the shipper a bill of lading, on which contain:

(1) and start writing by the shipper before loading the same as for the identification of the goods required for the major signs;

(2) in writing by the shipper provided the number of packages or pieces, or the quantity, or weight;

(3) The surface condition of the goods.

In addition, the "Hague Rules" Paragraph Four of Article Third also provides that: "The bill of lading should be used as the carrier in accordance with Disan Kuan (1), (2), (3) above, received the bill of lading the goods contained in the surface evidence. "

The "Hague Rules," to amend the "Visby Rules", the "Hague Rules" provides the necessary record of the matter but did not modify the content of these documented evidence of effectiveness, but was amended to provide that: "... ... However, when the bill of lading has been transferred to the third party in good faith with the non-adoption of this evidence to the contrary. "during the" Hague Rules "The rules of evidence made by the effectiveness of the additional language in the law provides an obligation for the carrier, that is For bona fide third party, the carrier shall be recorded on the bill of lading the goods concerned matters, and can not in fact the goods were not shipped to a defense. In this way, the bill of lading the goods recorded in the records would be in accordance with the bill of lading conclusive evidence of the receipt of the goods.

"Hamburg Rules" on the bill of lading must be documented in detail the contents of the provisions in the first paragraph of Article XV of 15 Chinese listed items must be documented:

(1) the goods name, logo, the number of packages or pieces, or other means of expressing weight or the number of the case of dangerous goods, then a clear statement of its hazardous nature, such information furnished by the shipper;

(2) the appearance of state of the goods;

(3) The carrier name and principal place of business location;

(4) The shipper name;

(5) The shipper named consignee when the consignee name;

(6) under the contract of carriage by sea port of loading, as well as the goods by the carrier to take over the port of shipment date;

(7) under the contract of carriage by sea port of discharge;

(8) more than one original bill of lading when the number of copies;

(9) bill of lading issued by location;

(10) signature of the carrier and its representatives;

(11) to cope with the amount of freight the consignee or the consignee shall pay the freight and other notes;

(12) on the carriage of goods shall be subject to the provisions of this rule, any departure from this phase, and the detriment of the shipper or the consignee null and void the terms of the statement;

(13) Goods should be shipped on deck or in the statement;

(14) a specific agreement between the carrier and the shipper of goods in the port of discharge delivery date or period;

(15) is higher than the carrier and the shipper agreed to the rules of the carrier's limit of liability.

"Hamburg Rules", Article Di Sankuan also provides that: "the provisions of this article mistakenly omitted from the bill of lading of one or more does not affect the legal nature of the document as a bill of lading, but the document must be consistent with the first Di Qikuan ( bill of lading definition) requirements. "

With regard to the bill of lading the necessary evidence of the matters recorded in the effectiveness of "Hamburg Rules" in Article XVI made with the "Visby Rules" the same provisions. That the carrier issuing the bill of lading has been shipped, then the bill of lading stated that the prima facie evidence of the goods have been shipped, when the bill of lading, including the consignee, including transfer to third parties in good faith, the record of the contents of the bill of lading with the final evidence effect.

3. General record items

(1) belongs to the carrier due to operational requirements documented items: Shun, such as voyage number, captain name, time and place of payment of freight, exchange rates, the bill of lading number and notify the and so on.

(2) The distinction between carrier and shipper responsibilities between the documented items: the number of disputes, such as the endorsement; in order to reduce or waive the carrier's liability and the endorsement of the content; in order to expand or stress on the already-printed bill of lading exemption Terms; for some easy-to-damage special cargo, the carrier affixed to the bill of lading exemption from liability for such damages as the content of the seal and so on.

(3), exonerate the carrier and the shipper to the terms of commitments, such as the COSCO front bottom right of the three bills of lading of text description:

① "above in apparent good condition of the goods (unless otherwise stated otherwise), have been installed in the above board, and should be above the port of discharge or the ship to safely reach and maintain a floating mooring locations near the unloading of goods." "weight, size, signs, numbers, quality, content and value is provided by the shipper, the carrier when the shipment was not checked. the shipper, the consignee and the bill of lading holder hereby expressly accepted and agreed to the contained in the bill of lading and its back all the printing, writing or printing requirements and conditions for exemption matters. "

② "To prove the above, the carrier or his agent has signed this bill of lading (several copies), one of which the completed delivery procedures, the remainder were invalid."

③ "Please pay special attention to the bill of lading the shipper of the goods within the insurance effect of the defense matters and conditions."

According to China's "Maritime"  provides that: unless the carrier has made a reservation in accordance with relevant regulations, the carrier or on behalf of the person issuing the bill of lading issued bills of lading, the carrier has already received the goods in accordance with conditions contained in the bill of lading or the goods have been prima facie evidence of shipment; the carrier's bill of lading to the transferee in good faith third person including a consignee, with the bill of lading contained in the proposed different levels of evidence, non-recognition.

"The Hague - Visby Rules" and the "Hamburg Rules" has a similar provision, the bill of lading the goods on the evidence of the matters recorded in the effectiveness of the provisions. In view of the foregoing, in the discharge port of destination, if the goods recorded in the actual situation and the bill of lading inconsistent, thus the losses caused to the consignee, except otherwise provided by law, the carrier is liable for compensation. As long as the carrier can prove that the reasons for the inconsistencies caused by the shipper, then they can recover to the shipper.

 

Second, the back of the bill of lading terms

 

The terms of the back of the bill of lading as a basis for supporting the rights and obligations of both parties, as many as more than 30 articles, ranging from a few also have 20, the mandatory provisions of these terms are generally divided into two groups and arbitrary provisions. Mandatory provisions of the content can not violate the national laws and international conventions, the port practices. China's "Maritime," Chapter IV of the contract of carriage of goods by sea the 44th article clearly states: "contract of carriage of goods by sea, and as evidence of contract of the bill of lading or other transport document in terms of violation of the provisions of this chapter, the null and void." " Hague Rules "third Diba Kuan states:" contract of carriage of any clause, covenant, or agreement, any lifting of the carrier or the ship due to negligence, negligence or failure to perform the responsibilities and obligations under this article, thus causing the goods or in connection with the goods the loss or damage, or by means other than the provisions of these rules to mitigate this responsibility, should be void and invalid. "The above provisions are mandatory application of the mandatory provisions of the bill of lading.

In addition to the mandatory provisions, the bill of lading on the back of any provisions, that is, the above-mentioned laws and regulations, international conventions do not clearly defined, allow the carrier to develop on their own terms, and the carrier, the other of printing, engraving seal or typing, handwriting in the form of the bill of lading add back the provisions that apply to certain specified ports or special cargo, or the shipper demands to add provisions. All of these provisions are that the carrier and the shipper, the consignee or bill of lading holder carriage of goods between the rights, duties, responsibilities and exemption clauses, which are the basis for resolving the dispute between them. Although the various bills of lading on the back of the number of different terms, the content varied, but usually have the following major provisions:

1. Definition clause (Definition)

Definition clause is a bill of lading or the relevant laws and regulations in the bill of lading bill of lading relating to terms with the meaning and scope of the clearly defined terms. If a bill of lading terms of COSCO first provides: cargo (Merchant), including the shipper (Shipper), consignee (Receiver), the consignor (Consignor), consignee (Consignee), bill of lading holder (Holder of B / L ), and the cargo owner (Owner of the Goods).

In international trade practice, the parties should be a bill of lading the carrier and the shipper is no objection. However, whether based on FOB or CFR or CIF price of transactions, trade contracts, in accordance with established practice, when the goods are loaded on the vessel at the port of loading of goods across the ship's rail, once the risks and responsibility shifts to the buyer as the consignee or a third party . If the goods during transport, loss or damage occurred, a claim against the carrier will no longer be the shipper, the consignee or a third party but, in this case, if only the parties to the contract the shipper as a one side, there will be the consignee or a third party is not a party to a contract, but have no right to claim against the carrier. In order to solve this contradiction, the British Bills of Lading Act 1855, the first provides that when the bill of lading through the endorsement of the transfer to the endorsee or consignee, the endorsee or consignee should be replaced as the endorser of the shipper's legal status, to become parties to the contract party, because "the Hague Rules of the definition of" provision did not relate to "cargo", the British Bills of Lading Act up for this shortfall, the shipping companies will be in the bill of lading "cargo" as a definition clause.