B/L - Bill of Ladinq - Document issued by a shipowner to a shipper of goods. It serves as a receipt for the goods, evidence of the contract of carriage and document of title. As a receipt it contains the description and quantity of the goods as well as suitable notations if the goods are not in apparent good condition when received by the ship. As evidence of the contract of carriage, the Bill of Lading contains the terms and conditions of the contract or, where the contract is represented by a Charter-Party, a reference to the Charter-Party As a document of title, the "to order" Bill of Lading is used by a third party to take delivery of the goods from a ship.