LIABILITY OF TRANSPORTATION COMPANY IN DELIVERING WITHOUT SURRENDER OF BILL OF LADING.
Question—Can a transportation company be held responsible for delivering a shipment of lumber to a consignee without surrender on the part of the consignee of signed bill of lading, originally issued when shipment was made?
Reply: Until lumber shipped has been completely delivered to the person entitled to receive it, the bill of lading represents the lumber, but no longer. The transfer of a bill of lading passes the title of the transferor to the transferee. If, therefore, a transportation company delivers the shipment to consignee without a surrender of the bill of lading it is liable to a person who has obtained a valid title to the shipment by transfer of the bill of lading from the consignee.
Opinion No. 29.
IF NO SPECIFIC TIME OF SHIPMENT IS NAMED A REASONABLE TIME IS UNDERSTOOD.
Question—On October 25th we bought of a manufacturer a carload of lumber through their agent. On the 30th we received confirmation of the order. Nothing was said about the time of shipment, except that in sending the sizes on October 26th, we told them to “ship at once.” On November 1st they wrote that they would ship it “the coming week.” No part of it has been shipped yet. We could have disposed of the carload during this time at a very good profit. During all this time we have been completely out of this kind of lumber. Have we a just claim for damages?
Reply: It does not appear whether the confirmation received by the buyers on October 30 was sent by the sellers before or after their receipt of the instruction to “ship at once.” The only importance of this point is this: If the sellers confirmed the order after receiving the instruction to “ship at once,” they were bound to ship at once. If they confirmed the order before receiving this instruction, then the instruction formed no part of the contract, and is not to be taken into account; in that case the sellers were bound simply to ship the lumber within a reasonable time—within the time within which these sizes commonly are shipped. If they have not done so, they are guilty of a breach of contract and the buyers may recover any damages the breach has caused them. They are entitled to be placed by the sellers in as good a position as they would be in if the sellers had carried out their contract according to its terms. The letter of the sellers of November 1, saying they would ship the goods “the coming week,” forms no part of the contract. The agreement was made before that letter was written, and it is binding as originally made. The letter is of importance, however, as showing an estimate of the sellers themselves as to what was a reasonable date of shipment. The letter is not binding upon the buyers, if they can prove that an earlier date would have been reasonable; but it is binding upon the sellers, who wrote it.
Opinion No. 36.
ONE WHO BUYS LUMBER IS LIABLE THOUGH HE TRANSFERS IT BEFORE DELIVERY.
Question—An individual buys a carload of lumber for future delivery and before it is delivered he forms a partnership with two other persons and turns the order over to the firm. Delivery of the lumber is made to this firm. Please say whether the individual is liable, or only the partnership. It is a limited partnership and the buyer has only a certain definite amount at stake with it.