What is the difference between bill of lading and mates receipt?

Bill of lading is a legal document between the shipper of a particular good and the carrier detailing the type, quantity and destination of the good being carried. The bill of lading also serves as a receipt of shipment when the good is delivered to the predetermined destination. This document must accompany the shipped goods, no matter the form of transportation, and must be signed by an authorized representative from the carrier, shipper and receiver. Mates receipt is a document originally issued by the first mate of the ship. He was the officer responsible for cargo. The document would be issued by him after the cargo was tallied into the ship by tally clerks. The shipper or his representative would then take the mates receipt to the master or the agent to exchange it for a bill of lading, which would incorporate any conditions inserted into tne mates receipt. Bill of lading is basically a document which contains all details of cargo whereas the use of Mates receipt is it describes the quality of each package of cargo. Bill of lading is signed by master of vessel only but Mates receipt is signed by vessels mate or 2nd officer. Explanation Mates receipt: This is a document originally issued by the first mate of the ship. He was the officer responsible for cargo. The document would be issued by him after the cargo was tallied into the ship by tally clerks. The shipper or his representative would then take the mate's receipt to the master or the agent to exchange it for a bill of lading, which would incorporate any conditions inserted into the mate's receipt. In modern days, the document known as the Mate's receipt" is not often signed by the mate of the ship but by some person in the shore office of the shipping company or its agents, although the name of the document remains the same. In a charterparty a clause will require the master to sign bills of lading as presented but in accordance with mates receipts: If it is impracticable for -the master to sign the bills of lading he can authorise the port agent to do so on his behalf, but also in accordance with the mate's receipts. For example, the NYPE charterparty states that ". . . Charterers are to load, stow and trim the cargo at their expense under the supervision of the Captain, who is to sign Bills of Lading for cargo as presented, in conformity with Mate's or Tally Clerk's receipts . . .". The "receipt" function of this document is similar to the bill of lading function of receipt for cargo on board the ship. This has the effect of confirming that the carrier is responsible for the goods and is the first evidence of the condition and quantity of the goods when they were received.. This document used in the shipment of a cargo. When the goods are received by or for the sea carrier, a mates receipt is issued either directly by the ship or by the ships agents. This is the first evidence that the goods are received and statements on the document describe the quantity of goods, any identifying marks and the apparent condition. This information is inserted from visual evidence when the goods are received. The quantity can be verified by a tally or count being made of the number of packages and the tally clerks receipt may be attached to the mates receipt. This information on the mates receipt is very important because this information should also be transferred on to the bill of lading.

The bills of lading are usually required to be issued in accordance or in conformity with the mates receipts and/or the tally clerks receipts. Sometimes the document that is issued by the agents of the carrier fulfills the function of the mates receipt but is called the dock receipt. Originally the mates receipt was signed by the first mate of the ship, hence its name. Now, it can just as likely be signed by the ships agents. The information on the mates receipt is usually checked against the information and description of the goods as furnished by the shipper, particularly when the shipper prepares the bill of lading document for signature by or for the carrier. While the mates receipt is a receipt for goods and good evidence of their quantity, nature and condition, it is not a document of title. It does not give the holder the same rights as does a bill of lading. Because it is important to the shipper to be able to obtain a bill of lading that he can present to an advising or confirming bank to obtain payment, if a mates receipt is lost or stolen, advertisements are usually placed in the commercial and shipping media to advise that the mates receipt (or dock receipt) is lost and cancelled. This is considered to prevent a carrier from issuing a bill of lading to the person who comes into possession of the original mates receipt. It is also very important to the value of the information on the bill of lading as prima facie evidence that the goods were received in the quantity and with the identifying marks as noted on the bill of lading. Under the Hague-Visby Rules this information on the bill of lading is prima fade evidence against the shipper and conclusive evidence against a third party transferee of the bill. The nature of this prima fade evidence is that it can be contradicted by the carriers raising contrary evidence. In The Nogar Mann, 1987, the ship was chartered to carry a cargo of wire rods. The charterers were the manufacturers of the rods. Some of the coils were rusty when shipped. The mates receipt was not noted appropriately. When the mates receipts were exchanged for the bills of lading, the ships agents issued unclaused, clean bills. When the vessel arrived at the discharging port, the damage was discovered and claims were made by the receivers. The shipowners compromised the receivers claims and then claimed against the charterers for indemnity. It was held that the agents would have been justified in refusing to sign bills of lading which were not a true representation of the condition of the goods. However, because the bills of lading had already been signed in an unclaused form, the carriers had to disprove the prima fade evidence that the goods were in good non of the bills of lading. The owners' argument that the charterers had breached contract of carriage by tendering a clean mates receipt was rejected by the Court of Appeal. The mates receipt was not part of the mechanism under the charterparty, which required bills of lading to be signed as presented. It was confirmed that the mates receipt was not a document of title as was the bill of lading. It was a simple receipt. Bill of lading (B/L): This is a document used in carriage of goods by sea. It possesses three characteristics or "functions": (a) It is a receipt for the goods, issued by the carrier; (b) It is a "document of title" to the goods, the proof of ownership; and, (c) It is evidence of the terms and conditions of the contract of carriage.

In charterparties, a number of clauses refer to bills of lading. For example, in the GENCON charterparty, cl. 9 states: "Bills of Lading The Captain to sign Bills of Lading at such rate of freight as presented without prejudice to this Charterparty, but should the freight by Bills of Lading amount to less than the total chartered freight the difference to be paid to the Captain in cash on signing Bills of Lading." In other charterparties another clause may refer to bills of lading. This is the "Clause Paramount". For example, cl. 34 in MULTIFORM makes the charter subject to the Hague-Visby Rules and also provides that all bills of lading issued under the charterparty should be subject to these Rules. In time charterparties, for example in the ASBATIME charterparty, a clause which is known as the "Employment and Indemnity Clause" requires the master to sign bills of lading as presented to him in accordance with the mate's receipts, and also to delegate authority to the charterers or their agents to do the same and, charterers undertake ". . . to indemnify the owners against all consequences or liabilities which may arise from any inconsistency between . . ." the charter and ". . . any Bills of Lading or waybills by the charterers or their agents or by the Captain at their request