Carver on Bills of Lading offers exhaustive coverage of the nature and uses of bills of lading in commercial transactions, negotiations and on occasion disputes. Written by two of the foremost commentators on this area of law, the work contains a commentary on the Hague-Visby rules and the Rotterdam rules in addition to coverage of the most important recent cases and Supreme Court decisions. The title is part of the British Shipping Laws Library.

Key Features

• Offers an in-depth analysis of the use and operation of bills of lading and related documents (such as sea waybills and delivery orders)
• Discusses the nature of a bill of lading, both as a receipt and as a contractual document 
• Explains the roles of each party to the bill of lading contract 
• Covers the contractual effects that follow a transfer of a bill of lading 
• Examines bills of lading as documents of title 
• Explains how and when third parties can be affected by bills of lading 
• Analyses the Hague and Hague-Visby Rules for the international carriage of goods by sea in detail 
• Offers commentary on the Rotterdam Rules
• Includes a new chapter on the Hamburg Rules

Since the fourth edition, a number of key cases and developments have been covered, including:

• The Thor Commander [2018] FCA 1326; [2019] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 167 (whether bill of lading or charterparty contract)
• The Polar [2021] EWCA Civ 1828 (incorporation of charterparty terms into bills of lading)
• The Joker [2019] EWHC 3541 (Comm); [2021] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 169 (conformity between charterparty and bill of lading dispute resolution terms)
• The Luna [2022] 1 Lloyd’s Rep. 216 (actual effect of document described as bill of lading)
• The Yue You 902 [2019] 2 Lloyd's Rep 617 (whether bill of lading spent)
• The Baltic Strait [2018] EWHC 629 (Comm) (relationship between the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992 and charterparty bills of lading)
• Glencore International AG v MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co SA [2017] EWCA Civ 365 (use of PIN codes to obtain delivery)
• Law Commission Report on Electronic Trade Documents (2022)
• Volcafe Ltd v Cia Sud Americana de Vapores SA [2018] UKSC 61; [2019] A.C. 358 (burden of proof in cargo damage cases; meaning of “inherent vice”)
• Alize 1954 v Allianz Elementar Versicherungs AG (The CMA CGM Libra) [2021] UKSC 51 (unseaworthiness; defective passage plan)
• The Aqasia [2018] EWCA Civ 276 (package or unit limitation)
• The Maersk Tangier [2018] EWCA Civ 778 (package or unit limitation)
• The Lady M [2019] EWCA Civ 388 (barratry)
• The Tai Prize [2021] EWCA Civ 87 (apparent order and condition)
• The Alhani [2018] EWHC 1495 (application of the Hague Rules time bar to misdelivery)