BILL OF LADING IN LEGAL REGULATION OF FOREIGN TRADE ACTIVITY: FROM PERSONAL SUBSCRIPTION TO ELECTRONIC CRYPTO CODE

Sea freight was and remains the most popular way of cargo delivery. Transportation of goods by sea routes plays a crucial role in the economy of most countries. The bill of lading acts as a legal instrument and guarantees the interests of participants in foreign trade deals and has a complex legal nature, due to its functionality. The use of electronic documents for formalizing relations between the participants in the maritime transport of goods has become possible due to the rapid development and widespread introduction of information technologies into the property turnover. In the period of digitalization of the Russian economy, the study of the legal regulation of the bill of lading accompanied by special computer software products is relevant and significant. The main purpose of the article is to disclose the essential characteristics of a bill of lading as a trading, title-bearing security from the perspective of the evolutionary development of this legal instrument over several centuries. The authors formulate a number of recommendations for the expanded implementation of electronic document circulation in maritime trade, arguing that, along with the adopted legal acts, should clarify the use of electronic documents when transporting goods by sea. In the Russian Federation, the rules on bills of lading must be supplemented by international agreements, additionally adopt a number of national legal acts in this sphere. The theoretical basis of the research was the studies of Russian and foreign investigators, which examine the relations of entities applying bills of lading in foreign economic activity (Vilkova, 2004; Golubchik, Katykha, 2017; Dubovec, 2006; Inshakova, Kalinina, Goncharov, 2019; Skaridov, 2018 et al.). Methodologically, the present research is based on the authors' materialistic worldview. General scientific methods were used: dialectic, inductive, deductive, analysis, synthesis, generalization, etc., as well as particular scientific methods: formal legal, comparative legal, etc.). As a result of the scientific analysis for the expanded implementation of electronic document circulation in maritime trade, along with the adopted legal acts, the authors proposed to specify the use of electronic documents for the carriage of goods by sea. The rules on bills of lading must be supplemented by international agreements, and a number of national legal acts in this area should be adopted. Suggestions for Smart applications to bills of lading and electronic registration of microchips, which should mark the goods moved by foreign trade deals, which will positively affect the increase of the rule of law at the domestic level through more precise electronic customs, tax, currency control. It is substantiated that in the aspect of the implementation of economic relations, digital registration acts a preventive and prophylactic function - reducing potential conflicts. To realize the benefits of smart applications to bills of lading, it is recommended to develop and adopt a set of legal norms of legislative and sub-legal level governing public relations in the digital economy, implementing these smart applications to bills of lading implementing business practice and inter-jurisdictional polysubject blockchain.