bill-of-lading

name	bill-of-lading
title	Bill of Lading
description	Drafts a U.S. ocean Bill of Lading (B/L) functioning as receipt, contract of carriage, and document of title under COGSA or Hague-Visby. Covers negotiable and straight B/Ls, cargo description, freight allocation, and core carriage clauses. Use when drafting or reviewing a bill of lading, master/house B/L, ocean shipment documentation, or title transfer. Trigger keywords: bill of lading, B/L, ocean carriage, COGSA, Hague-Visby, negotiable, straight, master bill, house bill.
author	CaseMark
author_url	https://github.com/CaseMark/skills/tree/main/skills/legal/bill-of-lading
license	Apache-2.0
version	0.1.0
execution_mode	open
jurisdiction	us
practice	maritime
language	en
tags	["agreement","drafting","regulatory"]

Bill of Lading

Produces a complete B/L that memorializes shipment, allocates risk, and complies with the governing carriage regime. Populate every field from source documents only — never invent data.

Prerequisites

1. Parties — shipper, consignee, notify party legal names, addresses, contacts
2. Booking & voyage — booking confirmation, vessel/voyage, ports, delivery terms
3. Cargo details — packing list, commercial invoice, marks/numbers, weights, measurements
4. Commercial terms — Incoterms, freight payment (prepaid/collect), currency, charges
5. Special requirements — insurance/declared value instructions, special handling, hazmat data (UN number, IMDG class) if applicable

Output Structure

1) Document Header

Field	Req	Notes
B/L Number	Yes	Unique identifier
B/L Type	Yes	Negotiable or Straight (Non-negotiable)
Issue Place/Date	Yes	City, country, date
Carrier / Shipper / Consignee	Yes	Legal name and address each
Notify Party	Opt	If applicable
Vessel/Voyage / Booking No.	Opt	If known
Container/Seal Nos.	Opt	If applicable

2) Shipment Routing

Field	Req	Notes
Place of Receipt	Yes	Terminal or facility
Port of Loading / Discharge	Yes	Port code if available
Place of Delivery	Yes	Final destination
Transshipment	Opt	Intermediate ports

3) Cargo Description

Field	Req	Notes
Description of Goods	Yes	Trade description; do not speculate