Transportation 31

 

Today the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Carmack Amendment does not apply to the inland rail portion of international, multimodal import shipments moving under through bills of lading (i.e., those covering both the ocean and inland portions of transport in a single document) and that the forum selection clause contained in the bills is enforceable.  The bills designated COGSA (the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act) as the law governing the carriers’ responsibility for cargo loss and damage claims during the entire shipment; contained a “Himalaya Clause,” which extends the bills’ defenses and liability limitations to subcontractors; and designated a Tokyo court as the venue for any dispute.  The 6-3 decision was issued in the companion cases of Union Pacific Railroad Company v. Regal-Beloit Corporation and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha v. Regal-Beloit Corporation.