{"id":"nsw:act-1921-005","name":"Sea-carriage of Goods (State) Act 1921","slug":"sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"nsw","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"5 of 1921","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":111939,"registerId":"nsw-act-1921-005-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of Act","content":"#### 1 Name of Act\n\n1 Name of Act\n\n> This Act may be cited as the [Sea-carriage of Goods (State) Act 1921](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1921-005).","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement of Act","content":"#### 2 Commencement of Act\n\n2 Commencement of Act\n\n> This Act shall commence on the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred and twenty-two.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Definition","content":"#### 3 Definition\n\n3 Definition\n\n> In this Act, goods includes every description of wares, merchandise, and things, except live animals.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application of Act","content":"#### 4 Application of Act\n\n4 Application of Act\n\n> This Act shall apply only in relation to ships carrying goods from any one place in the State of New South Wales to any other place in the said State, and in relation to goods so carried, or received to be so carried, in those ships.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Certain clauses prohibited in bills of lading","content":"#### 5 Certain clauses prohibited in bills of lading\n\n5 Certain clauses prohibited in bills of lading\n\n> Where any bill of lading or document contains any clause, covenant, or agreement, whereby:\n> \n> > (a) the owner, charterer, master, or agent of any ship, or the ship itself, is relieved from liability for loss or damage to goods arising from the harmful or improper condition of the ship’s hold, or any other part of the ship in which goods are carried, or arising from negligence, fault, or failure in the proper loading, stowage, custody, care, or delivery of goods received by them, or any of them, to be carried in or by the ship, or\n> \n> > (b) any obligations of the owner or charterer of any ship to exercise due diligence, and to properly man, equip, and supply the ship, to make and keep the ship seaworthy, and to make and keep the ship’s hold, refrigerating and cool chambers, and all other parts of the ship in which goods are carried, fit and safe for their reception, carriage, and preservation, are in any wise lessened, weakened, or avoided, or\n> \n> > (c) the obligations of the master, officers, agents, or servants of any ship to carefully handle and stow goods, and to care for, preserve, and properly deliver them, are in any wise lessened, weakened, or avoided,\n> \n> that clause, covenant, or agreement shall be illegal, null and void, and of no effect.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Construction and jurisdiction","content":"#### 6 Construction and jurisdiction\n\n6 Construction and jurisdiction\n\n> All parties to any bill of lading or document relating to the carriage of goods from any place in the State of New South Wales to any other place in the said State, shall be deemed to have intended to contract according to the laws in force in the said State, and any stipulation or agreement to the contrary, or purporting to oust or lessen the jurisdiction of the courts of the Commonwealth or of the said State in respect of the bill of lading or document, shall be illegal, null and void, and of no effect.","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"7","sectionType":"section","heading":"Penalties","content":"#### 7 Penalties\n\n7 Penalties\n\n> The owner, charterer, master, or agent of a ship shall not:\n> \n> > (a) insert in any bill of lading or document any clause, covenant, or agreement declared by this Act to be illegal, or\n> \n> > (b) make, sign, or execute any bill of lading or document containing any clause, covenant, or agreement declared by this Act to be illegal.\n> \n> Any such owner, charterer, master, or agent who contravenes any of the provisions of this section shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding 2 penalty units.\n> \n> **s 7:** Am 1993 No 47, Sch 1.","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"8","sectionType":"section","heading":"Implied clauses in bills of lading","content":"#### 8 Implied clauses in bills of lading\n\n8 Implied clauses in bills of lading\n\n> > (1) In every bill of lading with respect to goods a warranty shall be implied that the ship shall be, at the beginning of the voyage, seaworthy in all respects, and properly manned, equipped, and supplied.\n> \n> > (2) In every bill of lading with respect to goods, unless the contrary intention appears, a clause shall be implied whereby, if the ship is at the beginning of the voyage seaworthy in all respects, and properly manned, equipped, and supplied, neither the ship nor her owner, master, agent, or charterer shall be responsible for damage to or loss of the goods resulting from:\n> > \n> > > (a) faults or errors in navigation, or\n> > \n> > > (b) perils of the sea or navigable waters, or\n> > \n> > > (c) acts of God or the King’s enemies, or\n> > \n> > > (d) the inherent defect, quality, or vice of the goods, or\n> > \n> > > (e) the insufficiency of package of the goods, or\n> > \n> > > (f) the seizure of the goods under legal process, or\n> > \n> > > (g) any act of omission of the shipper or owner of the goods, his or her agent or representative, or\n> > \n> > > (h) saving or attempting to save life or property at sea, or\n> > \n> > > (i) any deviation in saving or attempting to save life or property at sea.","sortOrder":7}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[{"type":"other","section":"Status Information / Currency of version","severity":"low","reasoning":"While not a flaw in the substantive legislation itself, the metadata implies the Act has been static since 1999 yet is certified as current to 2026. If the Act has genuinely not changed, this is unremarkable; however, if amendments or judicial interpretations have affected its operation and are not reflected, the certification of currency may be misleading. The confidence is low because the document provided contains no substantive legislative text to analyse.","confidence":0.3,"description":"The legislation is described as 'Current version for 17 March 1998 to date (accessed 3 April 2026 at 16:00)' yet the file is noted as 'last modified 10 August 1999'. This creates an internal tension where a document purportedly current to 2026 has not been modified since 1999, raising questions about whether any intervening legal developments have been captured."},{"type":"other","section":"Entire document as provided","severity":"high","reasoning":"It is impossible to conduct a meaningful analysis of logical flaws, circular definitions, impossible compliance obligations, or self-contradictions in the substantive law because no substantive law has been provided. The document is a web-scrape artefact, not the Act itself. Any analysis of the actual Sea-carriage of Goods (State) Act 1921 (NSW) would require the operative sections, definitions, and schedules. The severity is marked high only in the context of the analytical task, not as a criticism of the Act itself.","confidence":0.98,"description":"The document provided contains no substantive legislative text whatsoever — only website navigation elements, metadata, status information, and footer content. An Act of Parliament that, as presented, consists entirely of site navigation menus and footer acknowledgements rather than operative provisions, definitions, or schedules is a structural absurdity in terms of the document supplied for analysis."}],"contradictions":[{"severity":"low","section_a":"Currency of version statement ('Current version for 17 March 1998 to date (accessed 3 April 2026)')","section_b":"File last modified statement ('File last modified 10 August 1999')","confidence":0.35,"description":"The version is asserted to be current up to the access date of 3 April 2026, yet the underlying file was last modified on 10 August 1999 — over 26 years prior. These two statements are in tension: either the document has been continuously current without any modification for 26 years (plausible but worth noting), or the currency certification is not accurately reflecting the document's actual maintenance state."}]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains tightly focused on its original purpose: regulating bills of lading for intra-state coastal shipping in NSW. The only amendment noted (1993) updated the penalty reference to 'penalty units'—a standard modernisation—without expanding the Act's substantive scope or application."},"complexity_factors":["Only 1 defined term ('goods') in the entire Act","No cross-references to other legislation","Straightforward conditional structure (if X, then Y is void)","Simple penalty provision with flat maximum","Minimal nesting of exceptions (only the implied exemptions in section 8(2))","Short total length (8 sections)","Clear, declarative language typical of early 20th century statute drafting"],"plain_english_summary":"This law protects businesses and individuals who ship goods by sea within New South Wales (from one NSW port to another). It stops shipping companies from using unfair contract terms to avoid responsibility for damaged or lost cargo.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Bans unfair clauses** in shipping contracts (called \"bills of lading\") that would let ship owners, captains, or agents avoid paying for losses caused by:\n  - Poor ship maintenance (unsafe holds, broken equipment)\n  - Careless loading, storage, or delivery of goods\n  - Failing to properly staff or supply the vessel\n- **Makes NSW law apply** to all coastal shipping contracts within the state, preventing companies from trying to use overseas laws or courts to avoid accountability.\n- **Sets penalties** (up to 2 penalty units) for anyone who tries to use these banned clauses.\n- **Adds automatic protections** into every contract:\n  - Ships must be seaworthy and properly equipped at the start of the voyage\n  - But ship owners aren't liable for certain unavoidable risks like storms at sea, navigation errors, or defective packaging\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Ship owners, charterers, captains, and shipping agents operating between NSW ports\n- Businesses and individuals sending goods by sea within NSW\n\n**Why it matters:**\nBefore this law, powerful shipping companies could force customers to sign contracts that let them off the hook for negligence—like failing to maintain a ship's cargo hold or carelessly stowing goods. This law levels the playing field by making certain basic responsibilities non-negotiable."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"While the original intent in 1921 was to provide a meaningful and operative framework for sea carriage of goods in NSW, the practical scope of this Act has been drastically narrowed over time. The enactment of comprehensive Commonwealth legislation (particularly the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1991 (Cth)) has effectively displaced this state law under the constitutional supremacy of federal law (section 109 of the Australian Constitution). What was once intended as substantive commercial regulation now functions, at best, as a historical artefact with minimal real-world application."},"complexity_factors":["The legislation itself is over 100 years old, meaning any analysis requires historical and comparative legal context to understand its current relevance","The full text of the Act is not provided — only metadata and website navigation content — making substantive analysis of its provisions impossible from this document alone","The interplay between state and federal law in sea carriage (constitutional division of powers) adds a layer of legal complexity for anyone trying to determine which law actually applies to them","Its status as an apparently dormant but technically 'in force' piece of legislation creates ambiguity about practical applicability"],"plain_english_summary":"## Sea-carriage of Goods (State) Act 1921 (NSW)\n\n**What is this?**\nThis is a very old New South Wales law from 1921 that deals with the rules around shipping goods by sea. It was designed to set out the rights and responsibilities of ship operators (carriers) and the people sending goods (shippers) when cargo is transported by sea.\n\n**Who does it affect?**\nIn principle, it would affect businesses and individuals involved in shipping goods by sea — importers, exporters, freight companies, and shipping lines operating in or out of NSW.\n\n**Why does it matter today?**\nHonestly, this law has very limited practical relevance today. Sea carriage of goods in Australia has long been governed by federal (Commonwealth) legislation — most notably the *Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1991* (Cth) — which overrides state laws in this area. This NSW Act has not been substantively updated since at least 1998 and appears to be largely a historical relic.\n\n**The bottom line:**\nIf you are shipping goods by sea to or from Australia, this Act is almost certainly **not** the law that governs your situation. Federal law takes precedence. This Act survives on the books but carries little practical weight for modern commerce."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921","history":"/api/acts/sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921/history","analysis":"/api/acts/sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/sea-carriage-of-goods-state-act-1921/documents"}}