What the course covers
The bill of lading performs three functions: receipt for the goods, evidence of the contract of carriage, and document of title. Articles 246 to 266 of the Ley 14/2014, de 24 de julio, de Navegación Marítima (Spanish Maritime Navigation Act) govern it, paper documents in articles 246 to 261 and electronic documents in articles 262 to 266.
Sessions cover issue and mandatory content, the types of document in use, endorsement and the holder's title to sue, the carrier's reservations and their evidential weight, and delivery of cargo without presentation of an original.
One module addresses the letter of indemnity by which a shipper obtains a clean bill against an undertaking to hold the carrier harmless. Article 261 LNM governs it: valid between shipper and carrier, unenforceable against a third-party holder, and ineffective where there is intent to defraud. Drafting and limits are worked through.
Liability is taught under the Hague-Visby Rules, with the limit of 666.67 SDR per package or 2 SDR per kilo, whichever is higher, under the 1979 Protocol amending the 1924 Convention. With the SDR at EUR 1.182 (IMF, 8 September 2026), that is EUR 788 per package or EUR 2.36 per kilo. Article X of the Convention sets out three alternative grounds of application. Suit must be brought within one year, and STS 173/2026 of 5 February, Plenary of the First Chamber of the Spanish Supreme Court (ECLI:ES:TS:2026:341), rules on the nature of that period.
The Rotterdam Rules are presented as a text not in force: five ratifications against the twenty required.
Who it is for
Freight forwarders and logistics operators issuing their own documents. Ship agents. Marine traffic departments of shippers and importers. Cargo underwriters and average adjusters. Lawyers pursuing or defending cargo loss, shortage and delay claims.
Why it matters
The document fixes each party's position. Who may sue, against whom, up to what limit and within what period follows from the terms of the bill and from who holds it.
Notice of cargo damage runs on its own clock: three working days, with notice on the next working day where the damage is apparent, under article 285 LNM. Missing it shifts the burden of proof.
Programme
- Functions and mandatory content of the bill of lading (arts. 246-261 LNM)
- Types of bill, endorsement and the holder's title to sue
- Carrier's reservations, apparent order and condition, evidential weight
- Letters of indemnity under art. 261 LNM: validity, limits and fraud
- Carrier liability: Hague-Visby limits in SDR and the one-year time bar
- Electronic bills of lading (arts. 262-266 LNM) and the Rotterdam Rules
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