The bill of lading is a crucial document in the shipping industry that serves as a contract between shippers and carriers, providing proof of receipt, evidence of a contract of carriage, and a document of title. It originated in the 13th century, evolving alongside maritime trade and law, with significant amendments leading to the formalization of rules in the early 20th century. Its functions and legal status were shaped by influential legislative changes, especially the Hague Rules established in 1924.

2. Members of Group 7
 Samantha Masters
 Cresent Ferguson
 Narda England
 Kacy-Ann Troupe
 Kevin Oram
 Nyelia Doyley
 Adia Martin
 Shavon Drysdale

3. What is the Bill of Lading?
 The Bill of Lading of is a document that
establishes the terms of contract between
a shipper and a transportation company.
(Glossary of Port and Shipping Terms, 2014)
 The Bill of lading is one of the most
important documents in the shipping
industry.

4. Some important functions of the bill of
lading are:
 It is used as a proof of receipt of shipment
by the carrier
 It is a document of title
 It is used as evidence for a contract of
carriage

5. Sample of
a Bill of
lading

6. History of the Bill of lading
The Bill of Lading is preceded by:
 The Medieval Law Merchant
 The Lex Mercatoria (New Law Merchant).

7.  The Bill of lading was invented in the 13th
century
 Its functions were gradually created by the
practical needs of substantial and tangible
evidence of contract for all primary parties
(i.e. shipper, carrier and consignee)
alongside technical development over
time.

8.  It is widely accepted that Italy is the
birthplace of the bill of lading, because of
the growing economies of the Italian city
states due to the sea commerce between
Italy and the Roman Empire in
Constantinople.
 Its first copy was written in 1564.

9. The initial functions of the bill of lading
during its inception were:
 A receipt for goods received by master or
ship owners,
 contract of carriage between shipper and
carrier,
 negotiable document of title.


10.  The Bill of lading became necessary when
merchants stopped travelling on board
ships with their goods.

11. Evolution of the Bill of Lading
 Evidence of the evolution of the bill of
lading can be seen in the revision of The
Hague rules to the Hague-Visby rules
(which both influenced the terms of
contract included on the bills of lading.)

12.  Additional advancement can be seen in the
numerous conventions established and
their constant revisions as well as the
creation of electronic bills of lading, even
though there has been much resistance
towards it.

13. Bill of lading written in
1765

14. Formalization of the Bill of
lading
 Ocean trade in the United States and
Britain depended heavily on British Ship
Owners.
 A point of crisis was reached between
these two domains concerning the struggle
between ship owning and cargo interest.

15.  As a result, legislations were amended to
remove the chaos and abuse produced by
unlimited freedom of contract.
 After considerable discussion amongst
major actors of the maritime nation, a set
of rules were drafted by the maritime law
committee of the international law
association at a meeting held in Hague
1921.

16.  These rules came to be known as the
Hague rules which constituted the various
Bills of lading.
 The rules were amended in London at a
CMI (Comite Maritime International)
conference in 1922.

17.  Further amendment was made at an
international convention in Brussels, 1922.
 Eventually an International Convention
was ultimately signed on August 25, 1924,
at which time the Bill of Lading became a
formal document of the Mercantile System.

18. Reference
Organization as Author
 Seine Maritime. (2003). Glossary of Port and Shipping
Terms. Retrieved from: http://www.seinemaritime.net/
 United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
(2013). Review of Maritime Transport. Retrieved from :
http://unctad.org/en/publicationslibrary/rmt2013_en.pdf
Unknown Author
 How to Import Export. (2014). Importance of Bill of
lading in international trade. Retrieved from:
http://howtoexportimport.com/3-Reasons-under-
Importance-of-bill-of-lading-in-in-45.aspx

19. Article in Journal Paginated by Volume
 Sweet, A.S. (2006). The new Lex Mercatoria and
transnational governance. Journal of European Public
Policy, 13, 627 –646. Retrieved from:
file:///C:/Users/SAM/Documents/COLLEGE%20NOTES/Co
mmercial%20Shipping/LexMercatoriaTransnationalgovern
ance.pdf