Bills of Lading are transferable documents of title and the transfer of document results in the transfer of the rights incorporated in it. Some of B/L are additionally negotiable. However the legal meaning of these two terms isn’t the same what is not respected in practice. Historically there is also a difference in legal grounds and scope of rights represented and transferred by negotiable bills of lading according to British, American and continental law. An important role in this differentiation was played by the doctrine of privity of contract. This ultimately affects the legal position and scope of the acquired rights of legitimate holders of bills of lading, which are considered to be “negotiable”, including the right to obtain claims from the carrier for cargo damage.