8/9/2019 Transpo 62 Sealand v Iac

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62 Sea Land Service Inc. v. IntermediateAppellate Court

FactsSea-Land Service, Inc. is a foreign shipping andforwarding company licensed to do business inthe Philippines. It received from Seaborne Trading

ompany in !a"land, alifornia a shipmentconsigned to Sen #iap #ing, the business nameused by Paulino ue in the wholesale and retailtrade which he operated out of an establishmentlocated on $orromeo and Plaridel Streets, ebu

ity.

The shipper not having declared the value of theshipment, no value was indicated in the bill oflading. The shipment was loaded on board the %SPatriot, a vessel owned and operated by Sea-Land, for discharge at the Port of ebu.

The shipment arrived in %anila and wasdischarged into the custody of the arrastrecontractor and the customs and port authorities.&hile awaiting trans-shipment to ebu, it wasstolen by pilferers and has never been recovered.

Paulino ue, the consignee, made formal claimupon Sea-Land for the value of the lost shipmen.Sea-Land offered to settle for 'S(),***.**, or itsthen Philippine peso e+uivalent of P *, **.**.asserting that said amount represented itsma imum liability for the loss of the shipmentunder the pac"age limitation clause in thecovering bill of lading. ue re/ected the offer and

thereafter brought suit for damages.

Issue&hether or not the consignee of seaborne freightis bound by stipulations in the covering bill oflading limiting to a fi ed amount the liability ofthe carrier for loss or damage to the cargo whereits value is not declared in the bill

#eld01S, the consignee is bound by the stipulations.

2atio

Liability of a common carrier under a contract ofcarriage is governed by the laws of the country of destination. Since the liability of a common carrierfor loss of or damage to goods transported by itunder a contract of carriage is governed by thelaws of the country of destination and the goodsin +uestion were shipped from the 'nited Statesto the Philippines, the liability of petitioner Sea-Land to the respondent consignee is governedprimarily by the ivil ode, and as ordained bythe said ode, suppletorily, in all matters not

determined thereby, by the ode of ommerceand special laws. !ne of these suppletory speciallaws is the arriage of 3oods by Sea 4ct, '.S.Public 4ct 5o. 678 which was made applicable toall contracts for the carriage of goods by sea toand from Philippine ports in foreign trade by

ommonwealth 4ct 5o. 6, approved on !ctober

77, 89 .

5othing contained in section ):6; of the arriageof 3oods by Sea 4ct is repugnant to orinconsistent with any of the provisions of the ivil

ode. The section merely gives more flesh andgreater specificity to the rather general terms of4rticle 8