What Bankers Should Know About Charter Party Bills of Lading?

(T. O. Commercial Workshop Series)

Introduction
The result of the survey by the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) indicates that 1/3 of the discrepancies in letters of credit is from transport documents. As maritime transport, especially chartering, is a technology outside the scope of competence of an average banker, confusions are created over the requirements in the UCP 500 about charter party bills of lading. Freight forwarders and carriers also have disputes with the bankers over discrepancies in transport documents, blaming them for mowing the lawn of their neighbours. These disputes are further aggravated by the new requirements under the UCP 500 and the ICC Position Paper No. 4.
This workshop introduces the essential knowledge of charter party bills of lading that bankers need to know to ascertain, and also to eliminate, the discrepancies in these transport documents. Case studies and famous court cases are used extensively to demonstrate the common discrepancies and disputes in transport documents from the consultant's work file. Our workshops are known to be inspiring, stimulating, pragmatic, easy to understand and humorous. Participants have high involvement over open forum discussions, led by the facilitator.
Objectives

After understanding the difference between marine/ocean bills of lading and charter party bills of lading, and what data and information should be put in each of these two transport documents, bankers then could have more confidence in determination of the discrepancies in these transport documents and could avoid unnecessary arguments with the parties.
From the context of the Hague/Visby, Hamburg and UNCTAD/ICC Rules, the updated Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992 and maritime court cases, grasp the real meaning and implications of Articles 23 and 25 of the UCP 500 and the ICC Position Paper No. 4 which may be easily misinterpreted in the trade.

Designed For
Supervisors and Managers in Banks
Experienced Document Examiners in Banks, particularly from commodity desk
Traders from commodity trade
Legal Counsel in Banks
Contents Outline
Maritime Chartering

The characteristics of maritime charter operations
Voyage charter
Contract of affreightment
Time charter
Bareboat/Demise charter
Popular charter parties for specific commodity trades
Highlights of the "ASBATANKVOY" charter party for hydrocarbon cargoes
Popular jargons/abbreviations in charter parties
Case studies

Methodology
Open discussions, case studies and other action learning techniques will be used extensively to encourage participants' involvement and to ensure right application of the skills learnt. Famous legal cases will be used to demonstrate the key issues and arguments. Technical articles written by the speaker for the Lloyds of London Press will be incorporated into the handouts for further reading.
The Speaker/Facilitator
Mr. T. O. Lee FAE, MCIArb, MITD
Mr. T. O. Lee is a world-class letter of credit expert representing Canada in various ICC Commissions, such as Banking, International Commercial Practice (Incoterms 2000) Electronic Trade, Mediation and Arbitration. He is invited by ICC to comment on the drafts of banking and trading rules, such as the UCP 500 Position Papers, URC 522, URR 525, DOCDEX, ISP 98, eUCP, Transferable Credits & UCP 500, Discrepant Documents, Waiver and Notice, International Standard Banking Practice (ISBP 645) and ICC Banking Commission Official Opinions. He is a Member of the UCP 500 Revision Consulting Group and is actively involved in ICC Commercial Crime Bureau investigations. He is a member of the Editorial Board of the ICC Publication "Documentary Credits Insight" (1994 -1999) and a Technical Adviser of "L/C Monitor" in Canada. Mr. Lee is a member of the Canadian Working Party on the ICC Commission on Banking Technique and Practice administered by the Canadian Bankers Association. Being an Accredited Arbitrator nominated by the International Center for Letters of Credit Arbitration, Inc. USA, he is also a Fellow and an Accredited Expert (Letter of Credit) of the Academy of Experts, Gray's Inn, London, a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, England, a Member of the United Nations International Multimodal Transportation Association, Geneva and a Member of the Institute of Training and Development, England.
He was a columnist in the Lloyd's of London Press "Maritime Asia/Intermodal Asia" magazine during the period of June 1993 to March 1995. He has been contributing since August 1993, a Friday column in the "Hong Kong Economic Journal". He is a co-author with Eric Ellen in ICC Publication No. 548 "Special Report on China Trade - The Risk Factor". He chairs public seminars in China, Hong Kong, other ASEAN and Middle East Countries and is a panelist in North America, providing in-house training and consultancy services to Fortune 500 corporations and banks globally. His professional workshops are known for the 5 "i's" - interesting, informative, interactive, innovative, and inspiring. He also provides expert witness services to international legal firms in letter of credit litigations.
After relocation of his consultants business from Hong Kong to Toronto in 1996, Mr. Lee's expertise is rapidly recognised in North America. He is now a member of the Canadian Working Party on ICC Commission on Banking Technique and Practice and an Accredited Arbitrator of the International Center for Letter of Credit Arbitration in USA.
Duration
One-day workshop.
Recommendations

"A brief discussion with Mr. T. O. Lee will convince you of his expertise on international trade particularly for his knowledge and experience in maritime chartering, multimodal transport, marine cargo insurance, trade frauds, the China Trade, mediation and arbitration".
Charles del Busto - Chairman of ICC Banking Commission and Chairman of UCP 500 Working Party
"Mr. Lee's presentation is thought provoking and original in its content. It brings to light not only problems with documentary credits but also solutions that you could obtain only from practical experience working in the field. I highly recommend it to both bankers and traders who are serious about letters of credit".
Jacob Katsman - Managing Editor, LC Monitor, Toronto, Canada
"Most comprehensive information in the handouts, inspiring presentation, professional in every respect, introducing the latest international trade fraud cases with in-depth analysis".
S. C. Kwok - Vice President, Citibank, Hong Kong
"Handouts are clear, concise and focused, with lots of real life cases to reflect the current trading environment and the important changes in the market place".
Kenneth Y. M. Lee - Senior Consultant, Bank of Communications, New York, USA

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