ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 on international trade and shipping documents deals with the international sales of goods, which is the very fabric of shipping. The chapter gives an overview of the mechanics of international trade and explains the role of English law, standard forms and negotiations in this context. Among the most relevant updates for this edition are the coming into force of the new Incoterms® 2020, and the chapter looks at what is new and the way in which it will affect international trade. The focus then shifts onto the fundamentals of the law on the sale of goods: passage of risk, passage of property and the seller’s duties as to the delivery of the goods sold. Payment and letters of credit are also dealt with as well as the basic remedies available for breach of contract. The focus of the chapter is mainly on c.i.f., c. & f. and f.o.b. sales, which are the most relevant for a book on maritime law, but references are made to the whole spectrum of trade terms in their proper context.
