A re-cap telex is no defence

Can a re-cap telex incorporate a law and arbitration clause into a bill of lading? Not in the case of Welex AG v Rosa Maritime Limited (2002) 2 Lloyd’s Rep 81.

A RECENT Commercial Court judgment held that in a dispute over whether a London arbitration clause had been incorporated into a bill of lading, where the existence of the original charterparty was disputed, a re-cap telex and associated documentation confirming the terms of the charterparty would suffice to constitute the charterparty and incorporate the law and arbitration clause into the bill of lading. The Judge also found that there was no basis for the assertion that the Human Rights Act 1998 required the court to adopt a reluctant approach to the incorporation of an arbitration and/or choice of law clause into a bill of lading.