ABSTRACT
This section is based on the famous pre-Act case of Couturier v Hastie (1856). In that case, the contract was for the sale of a specific cargo of corn which was on board a named ship sailing from Salonica to London. In fact, at the time the contract was made, the cargo of corn had been sold by the master of the ship in Tunis because it was fermenting owing to storm damage. The seller sued the buyer, claiming that he was entitled to the price even though he had no goods to deliver. The seller’s argument was that, in a contract of this kind, the buyer had agreed to pay against delivery of the shipping documents which would have given him rights against the carriers and against the insurers of the goods. The House of Lords held that the seller’s action failed.
