There are two basic forms of charter depending on whether the vessel is chartered for a period of time (time charter) or for one or more voyages (voyage charter). In both, the ship owner retains control of the vessel and agrees to provide a carrying service. For a time charter, the ship owner agrees to place the vessel's carrying capacity at the charterer's disposal for a specified period. For a voyage charter, the ship owner undertakes to carry a cargo between specified points. Once cargo is loaded, a bill of lading is issued acting as a receipt for cargo and evidence of the carriage contract terms. Bills of lading can also act as negotiable documents of title allowing cargo ownership transfer while in

1. A charter party is a contract which is negotiated in a free market, subject only to the laws of
supply and demand. While therelative bargaining strengths of the parties will depend on the current stateof the market,
ship owner and charterer are otherwiseable to negotiate their own terms free from any statutory interference. In practice,
however, they will invariably select a standard form of charter party as the basis of their agreement, to which they will probably
attach additional clauses to suit their own requirements. These standard forms have a variety of origins. Some have developed
over a number of years in association with a particular trade, such as grain, coal or ore, while others have been designed by
individual firms with a monopoly in a particular field, such as the transport of oil. A considerable number which have appeared
during the past century, however, are the products of the documentary committees of such bodies as the United Kingdom
Chamber of Shipping, the Baltic and International Maritime Conference and theJapanese Shipping Exchange, on many of which
both ship owner and charterer interests are represented.
There are essentially two basic forms of carriage charter, depending upon whether the vessel is
chartered for a period of time or for one or more voyages. In both instances the ship owner
retains control of equipping and managing the vessel and agrees to provide a carrying service. In
the case of the voyage charter he undertakes to carry a cargo between specified points, whereas
in a time charter he agrees to place the carrying capacity of his vessel at the disposal of the
charterer for a specified period of time.
In either case, once the cargo is loaded, a bill of lading will be issued which will act, not only as
a receipt for the cargo shipped, but also as prima facie evidence of the terms of the contract of
carriage.With the development of international trade and documentary credits, bills of lading
have acquired a third function, that of acting as negotiable documents of title in situations where
the shipper requires to transfer the ownership of cargo while it is in transit.
Difficulties arise in distinguishing the effects of the two types of contract of carriage in
situations where both charterparties and bills of lading are in use at the same time. Thus
charterers shipping their own goods on a chartered vessel require at least an acknowledgement
of the quantity of goods taken aboard and the condition in which they were shipped.
Bills issued to a charterer in such circumstances act merely as receipts for the cargo shipped
and as potential documents of title should the charterer decide to sell the goods while they
are still in transit. But the bills provide no evidence of the terms of the contract of carriage
between shipowner and charterer since their relationship is governed solely by the terms of
the charterparty.
Contract of affreighement or the contract of carriage of goods by sea
When you hire the whole ship the contract of affreighement is called charter parties. And when
the service of general ship is taken …………………………………..bill of lading.
Condition of contract of aff. And bill of lading:-
 Sea worthiness of ship when ship is in condition to deal with normal conditions of the
sea.
 Ship should be ready for the commencement of voyage at time date place mentioned as
per contract.
 No deviation from the prescribed path.
 Ship should not be tranferry dangerous object.

2. Kinds of bill of lading:-
 Clean bill of lading
 Dirty bill of lading
 Through bill of lading
 Received bill of lading
 On board bill of lading