---
title: "Map liability and time limits across an ocean leg and a rail leg"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/practice/maritime-shipping-and-transport/map-liability-regimes-across-a-multimodal-movement/united-states"
type: "task_jurisdiction_version"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "A37-T1-R11-US"
practice_area: "Maritime, Shipping & Transport"
tier: "yellow"
lawyer_review: "required"
jurisdictions: ["US"]
last_reviewed: "2026-10-22"
---

# Map liability and time limits across an ocean leg and a rail leg

> Split the movement into the ocean bill and the rail bill the papers already name. Record the notice dates and the delivery dates printed on those bills. Do not pick a defendant.

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/practice/maritime-shipping-and-transport/map-liability-regimes-across-a-multimodal-movement/united-states  
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

## Key facts

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Practice area | [Maritime, Shipping & Transport](https://ailawframework.com/practice/maritime-shipping-and-transport.md) |
| Human involvement | Yellow: Lawyer and AI draft together |
| How AI is used | Split the movement into the ocean bill and the rail bill the papers already name. Record the notice dates and the delivery dates printed on those bills. Do not pick a defendant. |
| What the lawyer must review | On an ocean bill, the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act note to 46 USC section 30701 requires written notice of loss before or at removal, or within three days of delivery if the damage is not apparent, and suit within one year after delivery or the date the goods should have been delivered. Failure to give notice does not bar suit. Liability is capped at $500 per package or customary freight unit unless the shipper declared the nature and value and it was inserted in the bill. The Act does not apply to charter parties. On a rail bill, 49 USC section 11706 makes the receiving and delivering rail carriers liable for actual loss or injury caused by the receiving carrier, the delivering carrier, or another rail carrier over whose line the property moved. A carrier may not set a claim period of less than 9 months or a suit period of less than 2 years. The suit period runs from written notice that the carrier has disallowed any part of the claim. An offer of compromise is not a disallowance unless the carrier, in writing, says that part is disallowed and gives reasons. A motor-carrier statute was not opened. |
| Written for | United States |
| Applies to | [Map liability regimes across a multimodal movement](https://ailawframework.com/practice/maritime-shipping-and-transport/map-liability-regimes-across-a-multimodal-movement.md) |

## Checking plan

- What the AI does: Split the movement into the ocean bill and the rail bill the papers already name. Record the notice dates and the delivery dates printed on those bills. Do not pick a defendant.
- Basis: Checked against the linked sources on 22 October 2026. Confirm the current instrument before reliance.

## Notes

- Do not apply the rail periods to the ocean bill, or the package cap to the rail bill.
- Section 11706 applies to rail carriers subject to the Board jurisdiction. It does not decide a truck leg.

## Sources

- [46 USC section 30701 (Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, statutory note)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/46/30701) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [49 USC section 11706 (liability of rail carriers under receipts and bills of lading)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/49/11706) (checked 2026-10-22)
- [ABA Formal Opinion 512, Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools (29 July 2024)](https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/professional_responsibility/ethics-opinions/aba-formal-opinion-512.pdf) (checked 2026-10-22)

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*