Bailment - separation of ownership and possession Question 4.1 - What are some examples of a bailment of goods in order to have the bailee perform services in relation to those goods and a bailment of goods for their use by the bailee? ANSWER: 1.0 Giving a car to the mechanic, giving your dog to the groomer, watch to a watch repair place. 2.0 Car hire, lending a book, trolley at a supermarket Question 4.2 - What are the types of bailments classified by duration? ANSWER: Bailment at will - where the bailor can take possession at any time Bailment at a term - agreement for how long it lasts Question 4.3 - Who does a sub-bailee of goods owe duties to? ANSWER: To the head bailor & the sub-bailor Question 4.4 - What are the rights of the bailee against third parties who interfere with the goods? ANSWER: The bailee can make claims directly against the third party who interfered with the goods - the bailee has these causes of actions available to them e.g., tort of conversion, tort of trespass & tort of detinue Question 4.5 Discuss whether in each of the following situations there is a bailment: (a) Manufacturers Pty Ltd manufactures goods for sale and export by ship. Tom Smith operates a business as a forwarding agent. When Manufacturers Pty Ltd has goods ready to fulfil export orders, Tom arranges for shipping space and for carriage from the premises of Manufacturers Pty Ltd to the ship and is available to supervise the transfer of the goods. Last week, Tom arrived at the premises of Manufacturers Pty Ltd together with an employee of Independent Carriers who was to transport the goods to Local Wharf. Tom supervised an employee of Manufacturers Pty Ltd and the employee of Independent Carriers loading the goods on to Independent Carriers' truck. After this, the Independent Carriers' truck departed with the goods, which were damaged on the way to the wharf. Was Tom a bailee? ANSWER:
Similar to - Matthew Short & Assocs Pty Ltd v Riviera Marine (International) Pty Ltd [2001] NSWCA 281 Tom is not the bailee - he is simply the forwarding agent in this case. The mere supervision of the goods is not sufficient to hold him as the bailee. The employees of Independent Carriers & Manufacturers would be held liable and therefore would be the bailees. (b) Tom Smith was engaged by Refrigerators Pty Ltd to fix stainless steel panels to refrigerators imported from the USA. The refrigerators were stored at a warehouse leased by Refrigerators Pty Ltd, together with the panels Refrigerators Pty Ltd obtained from another supplier. Tom had access to the refrigerators and to the panels to carry out the work and could move the refrigerators around within the premises for the purpose of working on them. When his work was finished, he left the refrigerators in the premises. Was Tom a bailee? ANSWER: This is not a bailment as he is carrying around these