The Gazette 1973

which all the activities of the freight forwarders are fully described. The Courts have been reticent in defin- ing them, but would seem to include any person who holds himself out to the general public—to provide and arrange transportation, including shipments, of prop- erty to the ultimate destination for compensation; in other words, he carries out all the conditions relating to the carriage of goods by land or by sea in a super- lative manner. At first, the legal status of the freight forwarder is fully considered; his independence is contrasted with that of the French "courtier maritime" who is a public official named by deed who, as a "commercant" has to keep all the relevant commercial books. Unlike a com- mon carrier, forwarding operations can be carried on with many other occupations such as finance. As re- gards negligence, he is only liable to the extent that he has undertaken duties of care; he will not, for instance, be liable for delivery if he has only undertaken to forward the goods, but he must inform the client of any loss, if he is to avoid ultimately an action for conveision and detinue. The forwarder must obey fully the instructions of the true owner. It is the duty of the forwarder to avoid delay as far as possible, particularly if perishable goods are concerned. Instructions to a forwarder may be written, oral, or implied by custom, but they must be rigorously observed. As regards dan- gerous goods, the forwarder need only accept them if the consignor gives a warranty that he will be liable to compensate the forwarder for any damage ensuing; this means that such goods must be properly packed so that their dangerous nature can be seen on inspection. As the risk borne by the forwarder is disproportionately high, it is customary for him to impose financial limi- tations upon his liability. However, where a forwarder arranges to forward goods by sea, he will invariably contract as an agent on behalf of his principal, the skipper, who has signed the bill of lading, and will therefore accept no responsibility for the acts of the sea carrier; but the forwarder may be liable for theft arising out of carriage by road. As regards liens, the forwarder, when acting as agent is given a particular lien. In respect of charges incurred on behalf of his prin- cipal; if he is also a carrier, the nature of the lien will depend on whether he is a common or a private carrier. The duties of the forwarder in relation to insurance will depend on whether his obligations arise under Gommon Law or under Standard Trading Conditions, or arising from special instructions. In all cases, Pro- fessor Hill has illustrated his text profusely with rele- vant case law, and has often made useful comparisons with the Civil Law. There is a most useful appendix containing the full text of Standard Trading Condi- tions, various conditions of Carriage (including the French and Belgian ones) and various Forwarding condi- tions. Professor Hill must be much commended for having written a law book on such a specialised subject with such expertise and learning. It is indeed a most readable book. Slater (John C.)—Cases and Statutes on Criminal Law. 8vo; pp. xv plus 166; London, Sweet & Maxwell, 1973; paperback, £1.25. This is one of the first two books to be published in the new series "Concise College Casenotes", the other being Cases and Statutes on Contract by Brazier, which is on the same lines. It is important to note that these Case- 99

BOOK REVIEWS Elles (Neil) and Vallatt (J.H.)—Community Law Through the Cases. 8vo; pp. xxviii plus 411; London, Stevens, and New York, Matthew Binder, 1973; £7.50. The learned authors are to be commended for having planned a work which would incorporate the most important cases relating to European Law, not only decided by the European Courts, but also by National Courts from Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. These latter decisions are all the more valuable as they have not all been available in English. Part I of the work deals with the Foundation of the Community, and treats of such questions as(l) the Free Movement of Goods, (2) the Elimination of Customs Duties between Member States eventually leading to the establishment of the Common Customs Tarriff, (3) the Prohibition of Quantitative Restric- tions with listed exemptions, (4) the Progressive Adjust- ment of State Monopolies, (5) the Problems of Agri- culture, (6) the Free Movement of Labour, the Right of Establishment of Migrant Workers and their Right to Social Security, and (7) the Problems of Transport. Part II of the work deals with the policy of the Community including (1) the Rules of Competition applying to Undertakings against Dumping, (2) Tax Provisions, (3) Regulations relating to Approximation of Laws, and (4) Economic Policy including (a) Balance of Payments, (b) Commerical Policy, and (c) Social Policy. Part III relates to the institutions of the Community including (1) the European Assembly, and (2) the pro- visions common to several institutions. The part relating to the Court of Justice deals with the specific problems of (1) the failure of Member States to comply with Treaty Obligations, (2) the Legality of Acts -of the Council and of the Commission, and (3) the problem of the Jurisdiction of the Court. Part IV deals with such-General Matters as (1) the contractual liability of the Community, including the application of the Treaty, and the attainment of the objectives of the Community. Part V deals specifically with the problems of the European Coal and Steel Community, which will only arise occasionally in the case of Irish readers. The appendices contain the full text of Regulations 17/1967, 19/1965 and 67/1967 which affect compe- tition. Numerous examples are given. For instance, under Article 177, which relates to the circumstances in which the European Court can give preliminary hear- ings, more than forty cases are listed. Each case is divided into (a) points decided, (b) background, and (c) judgment and reasoning. Normally, the European Court refrains from giving judgment on a reference until the National Court has given judgment, y$t, where there is difficulty in interpretation, Community law must prevail. As Community law has now become part of Irish law, this volume is an essential companion for all prac- titioners who wish to become proficient in this difficult branch of law. Hill (D.J.)—Freight Forwarders. 8vo; pp. xxi plus 376; London, Stevens, 1972. The learned author is Professor of Commercial Law in the University of Nairobi, and has written a treatise in