Old Waters, New Law: Parliament Clears Bills of Lading Bill, 2025

Parliament has cleared the Bills of Lading Bill, 2025, during the ongoing monsoon session. Passed by the Lok Sabha earlier this year and the Rajya Sabha on July 21, it now awaits presidential assent.[1]

The Bill seeks to repeal the Indian Bills of Lading Act, 1856, but its substance remains unchanged. No substantial changes have been introduced apart from a new provision empowering the central government to give directions to carry out provisions of the legislation. Minor restructuring has been done to improve clarity and reduce instances of disputes.

Both the 1856 law and the new Bill address issues arising from the doctrine of privity of contract, which precluded consignees and endorsees, who were not parties to the contract of carriage between the shipper and the carrier, from suing the carrier. The legislation provides that the shipper’s contractual rights and liabilities pass to the consignee or endorsee if property in the goods passes upon or by reason of the consignment or endorsement.

The colonial-era law closely mirrors the U.K.’s now-repealed Bills of Lading Act 1855. This Act was replaced by the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992, which extends beyond bills of lading, and in particular includes sea waybills and ship’s delivery orders. It also severed the link between the transfer of contractual rights and the passing of property, addressing issues caused by that linkage. For instance, it did not account for scenarios where the property passed independently of consignment or endorsement.

What About E-Bills of Lading?

Though digitised bills of lading are recognised under Section 4 of the Information Technology Act, 2000, the position is different for e-bills of lading. It is clarified that the new Bill will not result in legal recognition of e-bills of lading, which calls for a detailed framework. Though adoption of e-bills of lading offers benefits such as cost reduction, the risks involved should also be considered. On the global front, countries such as the U.K. and Singapore have adopted UNCITRAL’s Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records and have legal frameworks in this regard.

[1] Presidential assent was granted on the date of publication of this update. The Act can be accessed here.