International Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law relating to Bills of Lading (“Hague Rules”), and Protocol of Signature

(Brussels, 25 August 1924)

The President of the German Republic, the President of the Argentine Republic, His Majesty the King of the Belgians, the President of the Republic of Chile, the President of Cuba, His Majesty the King of Denmark and Iceland, His Majesty the King of Spain, the Head of the Estonian State, the President of the United States of America, the President of the Republic of Finland, the President of the French Republic, His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of Italy, His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, the President of the Latvian Republic, the President of the Republic of Mexico, His Majesty the King of Norway, Her Majesty the Queen of the Netherlands, the President of the Republic of Peru, the President of the Polish Republic, the President of the Portuguese Republic, His Majesty the King of Romania, His Majesty the King of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, His Majesty the King of Sweden, and the President of the Republic of Uruguay.

HAVING RECOGNIZED the utility of fixing by agreement certain uniform rules of law relating to bills of lading,

HAVE DECIDED to conclude a convention with this object and have appointed the following Plenipotentiaries:

WHO, duly authorized thereto, have agreed as follows:

Article 1

In this Convention the following words are employed with the meanings set out below:

(a) “Carrier” includes the owner or the charterer who enters into a contract of carriage with a shipper.

(b) “Contract of carriage” applies only to contracts of carriage covered by a bill of lading or any similar document of title, in so far as such document relates to the carriage of goods by sea, including any bill of lading or any similar documents as aforesaid issued under or pursuant to a charter party from the moment at which such bill of lading or similar document of title regulates the relations between a carrier and a holder of the same.

(c) “Goods” includes goods, wares, merchandise and articles of every king whatsoever except live animals and cargo which by the contract of carriage in stated as being carried on deck and is so carried.

(d) “Ship” means any vessel used for the carriage of goods by sea.

(e) “Carriage of goods” covers the period from the time when the goods are loaded on to the time they are discharged from the ship.

Article 2

Subject to the provisions of Article 6, under every contract of carriage of goods by sea the carrier, in relation to the loading, handling, stowage, carriage, custody, care and discharge of such goods, shall be subject to the responsibilities and liabilities, and entitled to the rights and immunities hereinafter set forth.

Article 3

1. The carrier shall be bound before and at the beginning of the voyage to exercise due diligence to:

(a) Make the ship seaworthy.

(b) Properly man, equip and supply the ship.

(c) Make the holds, refrigerating and cool chambers, and all other parts of the ship in which goods are carried, fit and safe for their reception, carriage and preservation.

2. Subject to the provisions of Article 4, the carrier shall properly and carefully load, handle, stow, carry, keep, care for, and discharge the goods carried.

3. After receiving the goods into his charge the carrier or the master or agent of the carrier shall, on demand of the shipper, issue to the shipper a bill of lading showing among other things:

(a) The leading marks necessary for identification of the goods as the same are furnished in writing by the shipper before the loading of such goods starts, provided such marks are stamped or otherwise shown clearly upon the goods if uncovered, or on the cases or coverings in which such goods are contained, in such a manner as should ordinarily remain legible until the end of the voyage.

(b) Either the number of packages or pieces, or the quantity, or weight, as the case may be, as furnished in writing by the shipper.

(c) The apparent order and condition of the goods.

Provided that no carrier, master or agent of the carrier shall be bound to state or show in the bill of lading any marks, number, quantity, or weight which he has reasonable ground for suspecting not accurately to represent the goods actually received, or which he has had no reasonable means of checking.

4. Such a bill of lading shall be prima facie evidence of the receipt by the carrier of the goods as therein described in accordance with paragraph 3(a), (b) and (c).

5. The shipper shall be deemed to have guaranteed to the carrier the accuracy at the time of shipment of the marks, number, quantity and weight, as furnished by him, and the shipper shall indemnity the carrier against all loss, damages and expenses arising or resulting from inaccuracies in such particulars.

The right of the carrier to such indemnity shall in no way limit his responsibility and liability under the contract of carriage to any person other than the shipper.

6. Unless notice of loss or damage and the general nature of such loss or damage be given in writing to the carrier or his agent at the port of discharge before or at the time of the removal of the goods into the custody of the person entitled to delivery thereof under the contract of carriage, or, if the loss or damage be not apparent, within three days, such removal shall be prima facie evidence of the delivery by the carrier of the goods as described in the bill of lading.

If the loss or damage is not apparent, the notice must be given within three days of the delivery of the goods.

The notice in writing need not be given if the state of the goods has, at the time of their receipt, been the subject of joint survey or inspection.

In any event the carrier and the ship shall be discharged from all liability in respect of loss or damage unless suit is brought within one year after delivery of the goods or the date when the goods should have been delivered.

In the case of any actual or apprehended loss or damage the carrier and the receiver shall give all reasonable facilities to each other for inspecting and tallying the goods.

7. After the goods are loaded the bill of lading to be issued by the carrier, master, or agent of the carrier, to the shipper shall, if the shipper so demands, be a “shipped” bill of lading, provided that if the shipper shall have previously taken up any document of title to such goods, he shall surrender the same as against the issue of the “shipped” bill of lading, but at the option of the carrier such document of title may be noted at the port of shipment by the carrier, master, or agent with the name or names of the ship or ships upon which the goods have been shipped and the date or dates of shipment, and when so noted, if it shows the particulars mentioned in paragraph 3 of Article 3, shall for the purpose of this Article be deemed to constitute a “shipped” bill of lading.

8. Any clause, covenant, agreement in a contract of carriage relieving the carrier or the ship form liability for loss or damage to, or in connexion with, goods arising from negligence, fault, or failure in the duties and obligations provided in this Article or lessening such liability otherwise than as provided in the Convention, shall be null and void and of no effect. A benefit of insurance in favour of the carrier or similar clause shall be deemed to be clause relieving the carrier from liability.

Article 4

1. Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be liable for loss or damage arising or resulting from unseaworthiness unless caused by want of due diligence on the part of the carrier to make the ship seaworthy and to secure that the ship is properly manned, equipped and supplied, and to make the holds, refrigerating and cool chambers and all other parts of the ship in which goods are carried fit and safe for their reception, carriage and preservation in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 3. Whenever loss or damage has resulted from unseaworthiness the burden of proving the exercise of due diligence shall be on the carrier or other person claiming exemption under this Article.

2. Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be responsible for loss or damage arising or resulting from:

(a) Act, neglect, or default of the master, mariner, pilot, or the servants of the carrier in the navigation or in the management of the ship.

(b) Fire, unless caused by the actual fault or privity of the carrier.

(c) Perils, damages and accidents of the sea or other navigable waters.

(d) Act of God.

(e) Act of war.

(f) Act of public enemies.

(g) Arrest or restraint or princes, rulers or people, or seizure under legal process.

(h) Quarantine restriction.

(i) Act or omission of the shipper or owner of the goods, his agent or representative.

(j) Strikes or lockouts or stoppage or restraint of labour from whatever cause, whether partial or general.

(k) Riots and civil commotions.

(l) Saving or attempting to save life or property at sea.

(m) Wastage in bulk or weight or any other loss or damage arising from inherent defect, quality or vice of the goods.

(n) Insufficiency of packing.

(o) Insufficiency or inadequacy of marks.

(p) Latent defects not discoverable by due diligence.

(q) Any other cause arising without the actual fault or privity of the carrier, or without the actual fault or neglect of the agents or servants of the carrier, but the burden of proof shall be on the person claiming the benefit of this exception to show that neither the actual fault or privity of the carrier nor the fault or neglect of the agents or servants of the carrier contributed to the loss or damage.

3. The shipper shall not be responsible for loss or damage sustained by the carrier or the ship arising or resulting from any cause without the act, fault or neglect of the shipper, his agents or his servants.

4. Any deviation in saving or attempting to save life or property at sea or any reasonable deviation shall not be deemed to be an infringement or breach of this Convention or of the contract of carriage, and the carrier shall not be liable for any loss or damage resulting therefrom.

5. Neither the carrier not the ship shall in any event be or become liable for any loss or damage to or in connexion with goods in an amount exceeding 100 pounds sterling per package or unit, or the equivalent of that sum in other currency unless the nature and value of such goods have been declared by the shipper before shipment and inserted in the bill of lading.

This declaration if embodied in the bill of lading shall be prima facie evidence, but shall not be binding or conclusive on the carrier.

By agreement between the carrier, master or agent of the carrier and the shipper another maximum amount than that mentioned in this paragraph may be fixed, provided that such maximum shall not be less than the figure above named.

Neither the carrier not the ship shall be responsible in any event for loss or damage to, or in connexion with, goods if the nature or value thereof has been knowingly misstated by the shipper in the bill of lading.

6. Good of an inflammable, explosive or dangerous nature to the shipment whereof the carrier, master or agent of the carrier has not consented with knowledge of their nature and character, may at any time before discharge be landed at any place, or destroyed or rendered innocuous by the carrier without compensation and the shipper of such goods shall be liable for all damage and expenses directly or indirectly arising out of or resulting from such shipment. If any such goods shipped with such knowledge and consent shall become a danger to the ship or cargo, they may in like manner be landed at any place, or destroyed or rendered innocuous by the carrier without liability on the part of the carrier except to general average, if any.

Article 5

A carrier shall be at liberty to surrender in whole or in part all or any of his rights and immunities or to increase any of his responsibilities and obligations under this Convention, provided such surrender or increase shall be embodied in the bill of lading issued to the shipper.

The provisions of this Convention shall not be applicable to charter parties, but if bills of lading are issued in the case of a ship under a charter party they shall comply with the terms of this Convention. Nothing in these rules shall be held to prevent the insertion in a bill of lading of any lawful provision regarding general average.

Article 6

Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding Articles, a carrier, master or agent of the carrier and a shipper shall in regard to any particular goods be at liberty to enter into any agreement in any terms as to the responsibility and liability of the carrier for such goods, and as to the rights and immunities of the carrier in respect of such goods, or his obligation as to seaworthiness, so far as this stipulation is not contrary to public policy, or the care or diligence of his servants or agents in regard to the loading, handling, stowage, carriage, custody, care and discharge of the goods carried by sea, provided that in this case no bill of lading has been or shall be issued and that the terms agreed shall be embodied in a receipt which shall be a non-negotiable document and shall be marked as such.

Any agreement so entered into shall have full legal effect.

Provided that this Article shall not apply to ordinary commercial shipments made in the ordinary course of trade, but only to other shipments where the character or condition of the property to be carried or the circumstances, terms and conditions under which the carriage is to be performed are such as reasonably to justify a special agreement.

Article 7

Nothing herein contained shall prevent a carrier or a shipper from entering into any agreement, stipulation, condition, reservation or exemption as to the responsibility and liability of the carrier or the ship for the loss or damage to, or in connexion with, the custody and care and handling of goods prior to the loading on, and subsequent to, the discharge from the ship on which the goods are carried by sea.

Article 8

The provisions of this Convention shall not affect the rights and obligations of the carrier under any statue for the time being in force relating to the limitation of the liability of owners of sea-going vessels.

Article 9

The monetary units mentioned in this Convention are to be taken to be gold value.

Those contracting States in which the pound sterling is not a monetary unit reserve to themselves the right of translating the sums indicated in this Convention in terms of pound sterling into terms of their own monetary system in round figures.

The national laws may reserve to the debtor the right of discharging his debt in national currency according to the rate of exchange prevailing on the day of the arrival of the ship at the port of discharge of the goods concerned.

Article 10

The provision of this Convention shall apply to all bills of lading issued in any of the contracting States.

Article 11

After an interval of not more than two years from the day on which the Convention is signed, the Belgian Government shall place itself in communication with the Governments of the High Contracting Parties which have declared themselves prepared to ratify the Convention, with a view to deciding whether it shall be put into force. The ratifications shall be deposited at Brussels at a date to be fixed by agreement among the said Governments. The first deposit of ratifications shall be recorded in a procès-verbal signed by the representatives of the Powers which take part therein and by the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The subsequent deposit of ratifications shall be made by means of a written notification, addressed to the Belgian Government and accompanied by the instrument of ratification.

A duly certified copy of the procès-verbal relating to the first deposit of ratifications, of the notifications referred to in the previous paragraph, and also of the instruments of ratification accompanying them, shall be immediately sent by the Belgian Government through the diplomatic channel to the Powers who have signed this Convention or who have acceded to it. In the cases contemplated in the preceding paragraph, the said Government shall inform them at the same time of the date on which it received the notification.

Article 12

Non-signatory States may accede to the present Convention whether or not they have been represented at the International Conference at Brussels.

A state which desires to accede shall notify its intention in writing to the Belgian Government, forwarding to it the document of accession, which shall be deposited in the archives of the said Government.

The Belgian Government shall immediately forward to all the States which have signed or acceded to the Convention a duly certified copy of the notification and of the act of accession, mentioning the date on which it received the notification.

Article 13

The High Contracting Parties may at any time of signature, ratification or accession declare that their acceptance of the present Convention does not include any or all of the self-governing dominions, or of the colonies, overseas possessions, protectorates or territories under their sovereignty or authority, and they may subsequently accede separately on behalf of any self-governing dominion, colony, overseas possession, protectorate or territory excluded in their declaration. They may also denounce the Convention separately in accordance with its provisions in respect of any self-governing dominion, or any colony, overseas possession, protectorate or territory under their sovereignty or authority.

Article 14

The present Convention shall take effect, in the case of the States which have taken part in the first deposit of ratifications, one year after the date of the protocol recording such deposit.

As respects the States which ratify subsequently or which accede, and also in cases in which the Convention is subsequently put into effect in accordance with Article 13, it shall take effect six months after the notifications specified in paragraph 2 of Article 11 and paragraph 2 of Article 12 have been received by the Belgian Government.

Article 15

In the event of one of the contracting States wishing to denounce the present Convention, the denunciation shall be notified in writing to the Belgian Government, which shall immediately communicate a duly certified copy of the notification to all the other States, informing them of the date on which it was received.

The denunciation shall only operate in respect of the State which made the notification, and on the expiry of one year after the notification has reached the Belgian Government.

Article 16

Any one of the contracting States shall have the right to call for a fresh conference with a view to considering possible amendments.

A State which would exercise this right should notify its intention to the other States through the Belgian Government, which would make arrangements for convening the Conference.

DONE at Brussels, in a single copy, August 25^th, 1924.

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PROTOCOL OF SIGNATURE

At the time of signing the International Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law relating to Bills of Lading the Plenipotentiaries whose signatures appear below have adopted this Protocol, which will have the same force and the same value as if its provisions were inserted in the text of the Convention to which it relates.

The High Contracting Parties may give effect to this Convention either by giving it the force of law or by including in their national legislation in a form appropriate to that legislation the rules adopted under this Convention.

統(tǒng)一提單的若干法律規(guī)則的國際公約（海牙規(guī)則）

第一條

本公約所用下列各詞，涵義如下：

（ａ）"承運人"包括與托運人訂有運輸合同的船舶所有人或租船人。

（ｂ）"運輸合同"僅適用于以提單或任何類似的物權(quán)證件進行有關(guān)海上貨物運輸?shù)暮贤�；在租船合同下或根�?jù)租船合同所簽發(fā)的提單或任何物權(quán)證件，在它們成為制約承運人與憑證持有人之間的關(guān)系準則時，也包括在內(nèi)。

（ｃ）"貨物"包括貨物、制品、商品和任何種類的物品，但活牲畜以及在運輸合同上載明裝載于艙面上并且已經(jīng)這樣裝運的貨物除外。

（ｄ）"船舶"是指用于海上貨物運輸?shù)娜魏未�舶�?/P>

（ｅ）"貨物運輸"是指自貨物裝上船時起，至卸下船時止的一段期間。

第二條

除遵照第六條規(guī)定外，每個海上貨物運輸合同的承運人，對有關(guān)貨物的裝載、搬運、配載、運送、保管、照料和卸載，都應(yīng)按照下列規(guī)定承擔責任和義務(wù)，并享受權(quán)利和豁免。

第三條

１．承運人須在開航前和開航時克盡職責：

   （ａ）使船舶適于航行；

   （ｂ）適當?shù)嘏鋫浯瑔T、裝備船舶和供應(yīng)船舶；

　 （ｃ）使貨艙、冷藏艙和該船其他載貨處所能適宜和安全地收受、運送和保管貨物。

２．除遵照第四條規(guī)定外，承運人應(yīng)適當和謹慎地裝卸、搬運、配載、運送、保管、照料和卸載所運貨物。

３．承運人或船長或承運人的代理人在收受貨物歸其照管后，經(jīng)托運人的請求，應(yīng)向托運人簽發(fā)提單，其上載明下列各項：

（ａ）與開始裝貨前由托運人書面提供者相同的、為辨認貨物所需的主要嘜頭，如果這項嘜頭是以印戳或其他方式標示在不帶包裝的貨物上，或在其中裝有貨物的箱子或包裝物上，該項嘜頭通常應(yīng)在航程終了時仍能保持清晰可認。

　 （ｂ）托運人用書面提供的包數(shù)或件數(shù)，或數(shù)量，或重量。

　 （ｃ）貨物的表面狀況。

但是，承運人、船長或承運人的代理人，不一定必須將任何貨物的嘜頭、號碼、數(shù)量或重量表明或標示在提單上，如果他有合理根據(jù)懷疑提單不能正確代表實際收到的貨物，或無適當方法進行核對的話。

４．依照第３款（ａ）、（ｂ）、（ｃ）項所載內(nèi)容的這樣一張?zhí)釂�，�?yīng)作為承運人收到該提單中所載貨物的初步證據(jù)。

５．托運人應(yīng)被視為已在裝船時向承運人保證，由他提供的嘜頭、號碼、數(shù)量和重量均正確無誤；并應(yīng)賠償給承運人由于這些項目不正確所引起或?qū)е碌囊磺袦缡�、損壞和費用。承運人的這種賠償權(quán)利，并不減輕其根據(jù)運輸合同對托運人以外的任何人所承擔的責任和義務(wù)。

６．在將貨物移交給根據(jù)運輸合同有權(quán)收貨的人之前或當時，除非在卸貨港將貨物的滅失和損害的一般情況，已用書面通知承運人或其代理人，則這種移交應(yīng)作為承運人已按照提單規(guī)定交付貨物的初步證據(jù)。

如果滅失或損壞不明顯，則這種通知應(yīng)于交付貨物之日起的三天內(nèi)提交。

如果貨物狀況在收受時已經(jīng)進行聯(lián)合檢驗或檢查，就無須再提交書面通知。

除非從貨物交付之日或應(yīng)交付之日起一年內(nèi)提出訴訟，承運人和船舶在任何情況下都免除對滅失或損害所負的一切責任。

遇有任何實際的或推定的滅失或損害，承運人與收貨人必須為檢驗和清點貨物相互給予一切合理便利。

７．貨物裝船后，如果托運人要求，簽發(fā)"已裝船"提單，承運人、船長或承運人的代理人簽發(fā)給托運人的提單，應(yīng)為"已裝船"提單，如果托運人事先已取得這種貨物的物權(quán)單據(jù)，應(yīng)交還這種單據(jù)，換取"已裝船"提單。但是，也可以根據(jù)承運人的決定，在裝貨港由承運人、船長或其代理人在上述物權(quán)單據(jù)上注明裝貨船名和裝船日期。經(jīng)過這樣注明的上述單據(jù)，如果載有第三條第３款所指項目，即應(yīng)成為本條所指的"已裝船"提單。

８．運輸合同中的任何條款、約定或協(xié)議，凡是解除承運人或船舶對由于疏忽、過失或未履行本條規(guī)定的責任和義務(wù)，因而引起貨物或關(guān)于貨物的滅失或損害的責任的，或以下同于本公約的規(guī)定減輕這種責任的，則一律無效。有利于承運人的保險利益或類似的條款，應(yīng)視為屬于免除承運人責任的條款。

第四條

１．不論承運人或船舶，對于因不適航所引起的滅失或損壞，都不負責，除非造成的原因是由于承運人未按第三條第１款的規(guī)定，克盡職責；使船舶適航；保證適當?shù)嘏鋫浯瑔T、裝備和供應(yīng)該船，以及使貨艙、冷藏艙和該船的其它裝貨處所能適宜并安全地收受、運送和保管貨物。凡由于船舶不適航所引起的滅失和損害，對于已克盡職責的舉證責任，應(yīng)由根據(jù)本條規(guī)定要求免責的承運人或其他人承擔。

２．不論承運人或船舶，對由于下列原因引起或造成的滅失或損壞，都不負責：

（ａ）船長、船員、引水員或承運人的雇傭人員，在航行或管理船舶中的行為、疏忽或不履行義務(wù)。

（ｂ）火災(zāi)，但由于承運人的實際過失或私謀所引起的除外。

（ｃ）海上或其它能航水域的災(zāi)難、危險和意外事故。

（ｄ）天災(zāi)。

（ｅ）戰(zhàn)爭行為。

（ｆ）公敵行為。

（ｇ）君主、當權(quán)者或人民的扣留或管制，或依法扣押。

（ｈ）檢疫限制。

（ｉ）托運人或貨主、其代理人或代表的行為或不行為。

（ｊ）不論由于任何原因所引起的局部或全面罷工、關(guān)廠停止或限制工作。

（ｋ）暴動和騷亂。

（ｌ）救助或企圖救助海上人命或財產(chǎn)。

（ｍ）由于貨物的固有缺點、性質(zhì)或缺陷引起的體積或重量虧損，或任何其它滅失或損壞。

（ｎ）包裝不善。

（ｏ）嘜頭不清或不當。

（ｐ）雖克盡職責亦不能發(fā)現(xiàn)的潛在缺點。

（ｑ）非由于承運人的實際過失或私謀，或者承運人的代理人，或雇傭人員的過失或疏忽所引起的其它任何原因；但是要求引用這條免責利益的人應(yīng)負責舉證，證明有關(guān)的滅失或損壞既非由于承運人的實際過失或私謀，亦非承運人的代理人或雇傭人員的過失或疏忽所造成。

３．對于任何非因托運人、托運人的代理人或其雇傭人員的行為、過失或疏忽所引起的使承運人或船舶遭受的滅失或損壞，托運人不負責任。

４．為救助或企圖救助海上人命或財產(chǎn)而發(fā)生的繞航，或任何合理繞航，都不能作為破壞或違反本公約或運輸合同的行為；承運人對由此而引起的任何滅失或損害，都不負責。

５．承運人或是船舶，在任何情況下對貨物或與貨物有關(guān)的滅失或損害，每件或每計費單位超過一百英鎊或與其等值的其他貨幣的部分，都不負責；但托運人于裝貨前已就該項貨物的性質(zhì)和價值提出聲明，并已在提單中注明的，不在此限。

該項聲明如經(jīng)載入提單，即做為初步證據(jù)，但它對承運人并不具有約束力或最終效力。

經(jīng)承運人、船長或承運人的代理人與托運人雙方協(xié)議，可規(guī)定不同于本款規(guī)定的另一最高限額，但該最高限額不得低于上述數(shù)額。

如承運人在提單中，故意謊報貨物性質(zhì)或價值，則在任何情況下，承運人或是船舶，對貨物或與貨物有關(guān)的滅失或損害，都不負責。

６．承運人、船長或承運人的代理人對于事先不知性質(zhì)而裝載的具有易燃、爆炸或危險性的貨物，可在卸貨前的任何時候?qū)⑵湫对谌魏蔚攸c，或?qū)⑵滗N毀，或使之無害，而不予賠償；該項貨物的托運人，應(yīng)對由于裝載該項貨物而直接或間接引起的一切損害或費用負責。如果承運人知道該項貨物的性質(zhì)，并已同意裝載，則在該項貨物對船舶或貨載發(fā)生危險時，亦得同樣將該項貨物卸在任何地點，或?qū)⑵滗N毀，或使之無害，而不負賠償責任，但如發(fā)生共同海損不在此限。

第五條

承運人可以自由地全部或部分放棄本公約中所規(guī)定的他的權(quán)利和豁免，或增加他所應(yīng)承擔的任何一項責任和義務(wù)。但是這種放棄或增加，須在簽發(fā)給托運人的提單上注明。

本公約的規(guī)定，不適用于租船合同，但如果提單是根據(jù)租船合同簽發(fā)的，則上述提單應(yīng)符合本公約的規(guī)定。本公約中的任何規(guī)定，都不得妨礙在提單中加注有關(guān)共同海損的任何合法條款。

第六條

雖有前述各條規(guī)定，只要不違反公共秩序，承運人、船長或承運人的代理人得與托運人就承運人對任何特定貨物應(yīng)負的責任和應(yīng)盡的義務(wù)，及其所享受的權(quán)利與豁免，或船舶適航的責任等，以任何條件，自由地訂立任何協(xié)議�；蚓统羞\人雇傭人員或代理人在海運貨物的裝載、搬運、配載、運送、保管、照料和卸載方面應(yīng)注意及謹慎的事項，自由訂立任何協(xié)議。但在這種情況下，必須是未曾簽發(fā)或?qū)⒉缓灠l(fā)提單，而且應(yīng)將上述協(xié)議的條款載入不得轉(zhuǎn)讓并注明這種字樣的收據(jù)內(nèi)。

這樣訂立的任何協(xié)議，都具有完全的法律效力。

但本條規(guī)定不適用于依照普通貿(mào)易程序成交的一般商業(yè)貨運，而僅在擬裝運的財物的性質(zhì)和狀況，或據(jù)以進行運輸?shù)沫h(huán)境、條款和條件，有訂立特別協(xié)議的合理需要時，才能適用。

第七條

本條約中的任何規(guī)定，都不妨礙承運人或托運人就承運人或船舶對海運船舶所載貨物于裝船以前或卸船以后所受滅失或損害，或與貨物的保管、照料和搬運有關(guān)的滅失或損害所應(yīng)承擔的責任與義務(wù)，訂立任何協(xié)議、規(guī)定、條件、保留或免責條款。

第八條

本公約各條規(guī)定，都不影響有關(guān)海運船舶所有人責任限制的任何現(xiàn)行法令所規(guī)定的承運人的權(quán)利和義務(wù)。

第九條

本公約所提到的貨幣單位為金價。

凡締約國中不以英鎊作為貨幣單位的，得保留其將本公約所指的英鎊數(shù)額以四舍五入的方式折合為本國貨幣的權(quán)利。

各國法律可以為債務(wù)人保留按船舶抵達卸貨港之日通知的兌換率，以本國貨幣償清其有關(guān)貨物的債務(wù)的權(quán)利。

第十條

本公約和各項規(guī)定，適用于在任何締約國所簽發(fā)的一切提單。

第十一條

自本公約簽字之日起不超過二年的期限內(nèi)，比利時政府應(yīng)與已聲明擬批準本公約的締約國保持聯(lián)系，以便決定是否使本公約生效。批準書應(yīng)于各締約國協(xié)商確定的日期交存于布魯塞爾。首次交存的批準書應(yīng)載入由參加國代表及比利時外交部長簽署的議定書內(nèi)。

以后交存的批準書，應(yīng)以書面通知送交比利時政府，并隨附批準文件。

比利時政府，應(yīng)立即將有關(guān)記載首次交存批準書的議定書和上段所指的通知，隨附批準書等的核證無誤的副本，通過外交途徑送交已簽署本公約或已加入本公約的國家。在上段所指情況下，比利時政府應(yīng)于收到通知的同時，知照各國。

第十二條

凡未簽署本公約的國家，不論是否已出席在布魯塞爾召開的國際會議，都可以加入本公約。

擬加入本公約的國家，應(yīng)將其意圖用書面通知比利時政府，并送交其加入的文件，該項文件應(yīng)存放在比利時政府檔案庫。

比利時政府應(yīng)立即將加入本公約通知書的核證無誤的副本，分送已簽署本公約或已加入本公約的國家，并注明它收到上述通知的日期。

第十三條

締約國的簽署、批準或加入本公約時，可以聲明其接受本公約并不包括其任何或全部自治領(lǐng)或殖民地、海外屬地、保護國或在其主權(quán)或權(quán)力管轄下的地域；并且可以在此后代表這些聲明中未包括的任何自治領(lǐng)或殖民地、海外屬地、保護國或地域?qū)⒎謩e加入本公約。各締約國還可以根據(jù)本公約的規(guī)定，代表其任何自治領(lǐng)或殖民地、海外屬地、保護國或其主權(quán)或權(quán)力管轄下的地域?qū)⒎謩e聲明退出本公約。

第十四條

本公約在首批交存批準書的各國之間，于議定書記載此項交存之日起一年后開始生效。此后批準或加入本公約的各國或根據(jù)第十三條規(guī)定使公約生效的各國，于此比利時政府收到第十一條第２款及第十二條第２段所指的通知六個月后生效。

第十五條

如有締約國欲退出本公約，應(yīng)用書面通知比利時政府，比利時政府立即將核證無誤的通知副本分送其他國家，并注明其收到上述通知的日期。

這種退出只對提出通知的國家有效，生效日期從上述通知送達比利時政府之日起一年以后開始。

第十六條

任何一個締約國都有權(quán)就考慮修改本公約事項，請求召開新的會議。

欲行使此項權(quán)利的國家，應(yīng)通過比利時政府將其意圖通知其他國家，由比利時政府安排召開會議事宜。

一九二四年八月二十五日訂于布魯塞爾，計一份。

簽字議定書

在簽訂《統(tǒng)一提單的若干法律規(guī)則的國際公約》時，下列簽字的全權(quán)代表都已采用本議定書；本議定書猶如已將其條款列入它所依附的公約那樣，具有同樣的效力。

各締約國得以給予本公約以法律效力，或?qū)⒈竟�約所采用的規(guī)則以適于其本國立法的形式納入該國的法律，使之生效。

各締約國得保留以下權(quán)力：

１．規(guī)定如發(fā)生第四條第２款（ｃ）至（ｐ）項所述情況，提單持有人應(yīng)有權(quán)就未在第（ａ）項提及的由于承運人本人或其雇傭人員的過失所引起的滅失或損壞，制定責任制度。

２．在本國沿海貿(mào)易中，將第六條規(guī)定各點用于各種貨物上，而不考慮該條最末一段所規(guī)定的限制