BAILMENT UNDER THE INDIAN CONTRACT ACT, 1872: A CRITICAL STUDY OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF BAILOR AND BAILEE
AUTHOR – HRITIK KUMAR SINGH, STUDENT AT LLOYD LAW COLLEGE (LLC)
BEST CITATION – HRITIK KUMAR SINGH, BAILMENT UNDER THE INDIAN CONTRACT ACT, 1872: A CRITICAL STUDY OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF BAILOR AND BAILEE, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (9) OF 2026, PG. 168-177, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.
Abstract
Bailment is a cornerstone of the Indian law of contract, governing the temporary transfer of possession of movable goods without any corresponding transfer of ownership. Codified under Sections 148 through 181 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, the doctrine imposes reciprocal rights and duties on the bailor (the person delivering the goods) and the bailee (the person receiving them) to ensure fair dealing and reasonable custody. This paper undertakes a doctrinal examination of the statutory provisions governing bailment, analyses the standard of care expected of the bailee, evaluates the judicial interpretation of bailment through landmark Indian case law, and offers a comparative perspective drawing on English and American common law. The study further assesses the continuing relevance of nineteenth-century bailment provisions to modern commercial activities including transportation, warehousing, logistics, and digital-era service relationships. The analysis concludes that while the statutory framework remains fundamentally sound, evolving commercial practices demand a more nuanced judicial approach to issues such as limitation-of-liability clauses, non-contractual bailment, and the interplay between bailment, tort, and contract.
Keywords—Bailment, bailor, bailee, Indian Contract Act, possession of goods, standard of care, lien, quasi-contract, comparative law, unjust enrichment