ABSTRACT
Mandatory application of the CMR The CMR governs contracts of carriage of goods by road, for reward, where the carriage is between two sovereign states, at least one of which must be a signatory to the CMR. 2 The CMR focuses on the terminus points of the contract rather than the nationality or domicile of the parties to the contract. The contract will still possess the international character necessary to attract the mandatory operation of the CMR, even if it is terminated before the goods leave the country of loading. In Buchanan & Co v Badco Forwarding and Shipping (UK) , 3 the contract was for the carriage of whisky from London to Paris. The whisky was stolen from the docks at Dover, but the contract was still treated as falling within the CMR, notwithstanding that no international carriage actually took place. Where the carrier is instructed to deliver to a different destination, the CMR may also continue to apply to that additional part of the carriage that is purely domestic. Thus, in Moto-Vespa v MAT , 4 goods destined for Barcelona were redirected to Madrid before arrival at their original destination. The CMR continued to govern the performance of the contract during the road journey from Barcelona to Madrid.
