Hawkspere Shipping Co Ltd v Intamex SA & Anr (The "Fidelity") - US Court of Appeals (4th Circuit) (Niemeyer, Michael and King Ct JJ) - 27 May 2003

Freight paid by shippers to cargo consolidator - Cargo consolidator failing to pay freight to carrier - Carrier exercising maritime lien over cargo for unpaid freight - Whether lien lawful - Applicable law of dispute - Whether charterparty successfully incorporated into bills of lading - Whether shippers estopped from asserting that cargo had been sold prior to exercise of lien

In 2000 the defendant shippers bought aluminium in Russia for sale to American buyers. They arranged for the ocean carriage of the aluminium through International Commodities Transport Services ("ICTS"), an Alabama corporation which was a "cargo consolidator", not owning any vessels itself. ICTS, as charterer, entered into a voyage charterparty with the plaintiff shipowner for the carriage of the aluminium from St Petersburg to Baltimore. ICTS also arranged for the vessel to carry cargo belonging to two other shippers. The shipowners issued bills of lading to the defendants in respect of the aluminium cargo. The defendants paid the freight to ICTS, but the latter only paid a small part of the freight to the shipowners.