Sea-Land Service Inc v.

IAC

Facts
 Sea-Land (foreign shipping co licensed to do business in PH) received from Seaborne Trading Co.
in Oakland, Cali a shipment consigned to Sen Hiap Hing, the business name used by Paulino Cue
in the whole sale and retail trade which he operated in Cebu.
 Shipper not having declared the value of shipment, no value was indicated in the bill of lading.
The shipment was loaded on board a vessel of Sea-Land, for discharge at the Port of Cebu. It was
brought into the custody of the arrastre contractor and customs authorities. After the shipment
was transferred in Manila, awaiting trans-shipment to Cebu, it was stolen by pilferers and has
never been recovered.
 Cue claimed upon Sea Land the value of the lost shipment (179,643,48 php), and Sea Land
offered to settle instead Php30,600.00 asserting that said amt. represented its maximum liability
under the “package limitation clause” in the covering bill of lading.

Issue and Ruling

WON Sea Land is liable for the loss of shipment in any amount beyond the limit stipulated in BOL. NO
 Carriage of Goods by Sea Act (COGSA), Sec.4(5) reads that neither the carrier nor the ship
shall in any event be liable for any loss or damage to or in connection with the
transportation of goods in an amount exceeding $500 per package…
 Clause 22 of the long-form bill of lading issued by Sea Land to its shipping clients also states
the same. The validity and binding effect of the limitation clause in the BOL here are fully
sustainable.
 Private respondent, by making claim for loss on the basis of the BOL, to all intents and
purposes accepted said bill. Having done so, he “becomes bound by all stipulations
contained therein whether on the front or the back thereof. Respondent cannot elude its
provisions simply because they prejudice him and take advantage of those that are
beneficial. Secondly, the fact that respondent shipped his goods on board the ship of
petitioner and paid the corresponding freight shows that he impliedly accepted the BOL,
and so it is treated as if it had been actually signed by him”