Initially, in order to provide a minimum degree of protection the ‘Hague Rules’ were introduced in 1921. It also defined the basic obligations of the carrier. However, these rules were inadequate, as they applied to outward bills and also for its minimum liability for ship owners. Later the existence of the ‘Hague-Visby’ in 1968 brought in certain changes.
Developing countries, nevertheless sought for radical change. This resulted in the ‘Hamburg Rules’ which came into force in 1992. These were however only ratified by 33 states. Thereby to bring further harmonisation in 2008 the UNCITRAL Convention on Contracts for the International Carriage of Goods Wholly or Partly by Sea was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. This new convention was named ‘The Rotterdam Rules’.
A legal briefing was done on the impact of the new convention by the UK P&I Club. Whereby, they have analysed the difference and additions on the rules governing bill of lading made till date. Interesting additions were found, for example, regarding the delivery of goods. Previously the rules were silent but now the carrier bears the responsibility until the goods are delivered to the consignee. Also previously there were no express provisions on the law and jurisdiction or arbitration, whereas now the claimant has the choice of choosing where to commence proceedings. Another important addition has been the express specification on the limitation of action rather the time bar for bringing proceedings. The 12 months has been extended to two years time in the new convention. You can find detailed analysis of all the conventions in <http://www.ukpandi.com/ukpandi/resource.nsf/Files/Briefing27/$FILE/Briefing27.pdf>.
These developments may however satisfy the developing countries’ concerns regarding the rules of bills of lading.
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