Part 1: Critically assess the argument that electronic bills of lading are better and more effective than paper bills of lading.
This essay will answer the first part of the question by at first introducing bills of lading, their history and features and then explain what electronic bills of lading are.
Bills of lading originated as a result of Mediterranean trading during the 11th or 12th century AD when records of the goods loaded (where the word ‘lading’ comes from) on to ships over long distances were kept.
During the early part of the 20th century rules were drawn up by the International Law Association called the Hague Rules that aimed at regulating the obligations and the liabilities of those carrying the goods by sea.
A bill of lading documents the type, destination and quantity of the good being transported and also serves as a receipt of shipment when the goods reach their destination. Being a legal document between the carrier and the shipper, which must be signed by both and also signed by the recipient, a bill of lading can be treated as evidence under many different laws as it is a document of title.
Due to it being a document of title the shipment will be incomplete without the documentation; therefore it cannot be passed on to the correct party when the goods are presented at the port of destination stipulated in the ocean bill of lading.
Bills of lading are usually made in three original pieces or parts which are sent off to the consignee by mail, another is sent off to with the goods and the last is retained by the shipper. Sometimes the master of the ship retains a copy for their own personal reference. An example copy of a bill of lading may be seen in appendix one, at the end of this essay.
Two ex...
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...hnology Law, 17(2), 125-149.
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The ITGC regularly handle program changes, development, and access as well as basic computer operations. A poorly designed IT framework and accessibility protocols increase the company’s susceptibility to internal and external attacks, which result in the loss valuable financial information or its utilization to commit and conceal fraud. In asset misappropriation for example, an individual with access to the company’s accounting software has the opportunity to commit and conceal fraud. For example, Wayland Manufacturing Company’s accounting department oversees the maintenance of the Accounts Payable and Purchases general ledgers. Therefore, Newbaker is responsible for recording invoices and cash disbursements. Therefore, he has the accessibility to modify the company’s vendor list to include fictitious vendors that increase the likelihood of payment for fictitious invoices (Fraud Risk Assessment n.d.) (Eikel 2008) (Arens, Elder, & Borsum
If one tries to design and implement a bundled payment system with commercial payers, he or she would immediately find that there exist complex legal issues of Fraud and Abuse to consider. This is mainly because the applicable laws were not designed to such types of systems. Although it may require a significant amount of time and effort to set up a compliant bundled payment system, I believe that it is possible to create such systems, and eventually, to overcome legal challenges for Fraud and Abuse. This paper hypothesizes that in designing commercial bundled payment system, increased utilization of applicable exceptions of related laws can reduce the potential legal risk of Fraud and Abuse.
There are many laws in place by the United States government to protect consumers. This term paper will examine one law in particular, The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) of 1986. “The ECPA applies to both government and private entities, but appears to be more restrictive concerning government interception and access.” [1] The ECPA was put in place to protect individual’s electronic communication rights from being violated. Without a law of this type, our on-line world would be a welcome mat for anyone who wanted to invade our lives.
An amazing assortment of goods are moved over the worlds ocean trade routes. Of necessity, the carriers charge for the service they render. These charges vary almost as widely as do the cargoes, for they mirror both the shipowner’s costs and the special conditions prevailing on the trade routes traversed by the ships. Ocean freight rates may be described as the prices charged for the services of water carriers. Each ship operator develops it’s own rates, usually without consultation with the shippers. The charges reflect the cost of providing the carriage, the value of this service to the owner of the goods, the ability of the merchandise to support the expense of transportation, and economic conditions in general. Freight rates truly reflect the working of the laws of supply and demand. In tramp shipping, particularly, it is possible to observe how these factors influence the rise or fall of freight rates from day to day and from cargo to cargo. Tramp ships transport, in shipload (or “full cargo”) lots, commodities which, like coal, grain, ore, and phosphate rock, can be moved in bulk. The fact that usually only one shipper and one commodity are involved simplifies the establishment of a freight rate for this particular movement. To the capital charges of ownership and the expense of administration and overhead must be added the cost of running the ship, handling the cargo, and paying port fees and harbor dues. Against this total is set the number of tons to be hauled, and the resultant figure is what the tramp must charge, per ton of cargo loaded, to break even on the contemplated voyage. If competitive conditions permit, a margin for profit will form part of the quoted rate. If however the prevailing economic climate is unfavorable, the owner has the privilege of retiring the ship to a quit backwater, there to wait until the financial skies are brighter. The tramp operator does not depend upon the longterm goodwill of the shippers, but is free to accept those offers which appear profitable at the moment. When adversity threatens, those charters are accepted which minimize anticipated losses. If there is a choice, the cost of temporary lay-up is contrasted with the loss which continued operation might produce, and the less expensive alternative is selected in a bow to the inevitable made with whatever grace that can be mustered.
Tan, L. M., and M. Newman. 1991. “Computer Misuse and the Law.” International Journal of Information Management 11 (4): 282–291.
By the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 1924 , Schedule, Article I (b): "'Contract of carriage' applies only to contracts of carriage covered by a bill of lading... In so far as such document relates to the carriage of goods by sea, including any bill of lading... Issued under or pursuant to a charter party from the moment at which such bill of lading... Regulates the relations between a carrier and a holder of the same".
Before intermodal containers were developed, goods were moved from land to sea using crates, pallets, sacks, or boxes. The man-hours to load and unload freight were labor intensive. After World War II, Malcolm McLean developed the first container. The container was constructed out of 2.5 mm corrugated steel, and was eight feet tall and ten feet long. However, there was substantial hesitation in containerized shipments be...
The next topic is the bill of lading, which is an instrument issued by an ocean carrier to a shipper that serves as a receipt of the contract of carriage, and as a document of title for the goods. The treaty that governs the bill of lading is the International Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law Relating to Bills of Lading. It is also known as the 1921 Hague Rules and the Brussels convention of 1924. The Hague Rules were extensively revised in 1968 by a Brussels Protocol. The amended version is known as the Hague-Visby Rules. Most countries are a party to the 1921 Hague Rules, and a few have adopted that Hague-Visby amendments such as France and the United Kingdom. A bill of lading serves three purposes, First it is a carrier’s receipt for goods. Second it i...
Lump Sum - Can be multiple items for different documentation. I.e. Shipping line Bill of lading / House Bill of lading / certificates of origin etc.
This is a documents required in case of import of goods. It is like shipping bill in case of exports. A bill of Entry is the document testifying the fact that goods of the stated value and description in specified quantity are entering into the country from abroad. The customs office supplies this foam which is prepared in triplicate. Three different colors are used to prepare bill of entry. One copy is retains by custom department, other is retained by port trust and the third is kept by the importer.
“CARRYING SOLID BULK CARGOES INVOLVES SERIOUS RISKS, WHICH MUST BE MANAGED CAREFULLY TO SAFEGUARD THE CREW AND SHIP” (LLOYD’S REGISTER)
The use of credit and debit cards today are taking a tour in the sense that electronic cash is becoming more admissible as the world makes a switch towar...
The scope of e-freight includes both general and special cargo (specifically, dangerous goods, live animals, and perishables are included in scope). This does not mean that special cargo documents specifically relevant to these documents can be removed on all e-freight trade lanes, simply that it is possible to remove a core set of documents for these types of cargo (for example, air waybill, house waybill, house manifest, invoice, packing list). On many trade lanes however, as of January 2013, the special cargo documents associated with these types of cargo (for example, Shippers Declaration for Dangerous Goods, still needed to be transported in paper on most trade lanes. Details on what documents can be removed on what trade lanes appear on the e-Cargo Matchmaker at Here. Prior to the implementation of special cargo in a particular location and on a particular trade lane, industry stakeholders need to ensure that there is no specific local regulation or practice preventing the
The convention aims both to broadly safeguard the rights of seafarers and to protect economic interests for ship owners through fair competition. It is also a guide for maritime labour rights and global governance in genera...
The invention of money is perhaps one of the greatest achievements of human civilization. From the very beginning of society, people have used money to circumvent the difficulties of bartering and to foster trade and commerce. Since then, money has come a long way. No longer do we need to rely on silver coins, cocoa beans, or even anything of intrinsic value to conduct our business; today, we use paper currency, which is convenient and easy to carry around. But slowly, we are moving into the digital age of money, an age in which less of our money is actually tangible and more of it is just data on a computer server. To some, this prospect may seem daunting. However, given the major advantages of electronic money over outmoded paper counterpart, society as a whole should embrace the upcoming era of digital money.