It is often said that a bill of lading is not a contract of
carriage, but is merely "excellent evidence" of its
terms.1 However, the courts are divided on how far
beyond the bill of lading we can go, specifically in terms of
declaring the value of a shipment. This unpredictability in the law
can mean the difference of hundreds of thousands of dollars for a
carrier who has lost or damaged cargo in its possession.
The reason is due to the limitations of liability imposed by
Ontario legislation in contracts of cargo by motor carriers.
Pursuant to s. 9 of Sch. 1 of Ontario Regulation
643/05,2 the liability of such carriers is limited to
$4.41 per kilogram of the transporting cargo. Typically the value
to replace those goods, in the event that delivery is not effected
in good condition, will be far above that amount (consider gold,
while an extreme example, is over $60,000 CAD / kg!) If, however, a
value is declared on the face of the contract of carriage, this
"declared
