Original scientific paper
Clean bill of lading in contract of carriage and documentary credit : When clean may not be clean
Časlav Pejović
orcid.org/0000-0003-0884-5297
; Faculty of Law, Kyushu University, Japan
Abstract
X is a small producer of plastic products from China. Searching on internet for suppliers
of plastic raw materials X found Y, a supplier based in the United States, offering
these materials at a very favourable price. X and Y entered into sale contract
under Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) terms. Following CIF terms, payment
was to be made by lett er of credit. Y shipped the goods in a container and delivered
for carriage within the agreed time. Carrier then inserted a ‘’said to contain’’ clause
into the bill of lading, and the bank accepted such document. When X opened container
it discovered that the goods were in such bad condition that they could not
be used in the manufacturing process. X contacted Y, by email, and demanded delivery
of substitute goods, which would conform to the contract. Y refused, claiming
that the goods were delivered for carriage in good condition. Y could not be reached
by telephone, and its address stated on its website was wrong. X had no redress
against the Carrier, because the Carrier validly excluded its liability with a ‘’said to
contain’’ clause. The Bank was also not liable, because this clause was acceptable
under the lett er of credit rules. X contacted a lawyer in the United States, and after
receiving an estimate of att orney expenses, which would not be recoverable under
the U.S. law, X decided to give up the case and bear the loss.
Keywords
documentary credit; clean bill of lading; fraud; the Uniform Customs and Practices for Documentary Credits (UCP)
Hrčak ID:
166982
URI
Publication date:
27.7.2016.
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