The Future of Carriage of Goods by Sea: A Legal Analysis of Electronic Bills of Lading

Sammanfattning: The commercial carriage of goods by sea is a vital part of global trade. Considering how the planet is constructed, this is unlikely to change. While technological advances are constantly made, the maritime sector has been limited due to lack of a modern legal framework covering electronic transport records. Therefore, The Future of Carriage of Goods by Sea: A Legal Analysis of Electronic Bills of Lading, aimed to examine the legal regime governing electronic bills of lading. The research for this graduate thesis was conducted using the legal dogmatic method. The traditional primary and secondary sources of law were analysed to find legal solutions to the issues raised in this thesis. The research questions of the thesis included why electronic bills of lading are preferable and how they can be legally used. The analysis of this thesis proved that improved efficiency is the main reason to use electronic bills of lading. It also highlighted the lack of a functional legal regime governing these bills under English law. An important aspect of this thesis was to examine the Rotterdam Rules as the solution to fill the legal vacuum. The recommendation of the thesis included the ratification of the Rotterdam Rules in relation to electronic transport records. However, this Convention is not likely to enter into force anytime soon. The author of this thesis concluded that individual states should primarily adopt UNCITRAL’s Model Law into their national law. The purpose of this would be to give electronic bills of lading legal coverage while preparing their national laws for the technological solutions of tomorrow.