Electronic Transport Documents from the MLEC to the MLETR

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) adopted the Model Law on Electronic Commerce (the MLEC) in 1996. It sets out provisions that apply to electronic transport documents, including electronic bills of lading (eB/L).[[1]] To remove legal obstacles to the use of electronic transport documents, the MLEC adopts a specific set of rules dealing with electronic transport documents and establishes legal equivalence between electronic and paper-based transport documents. The general provisions contained in the MLEC are applicable to electronic transport documents and the MLEC also provides for specific application of those simple provisions in the context of the use of electronic transport documents, but its provisions do not adequately address complex problems[[2]] arising from electronic transferable records[[3]] such as bills of lading, warehouse receipts, consignment notes and air waybills.