(a) A bailee shall deliver the goods to a person entitled under a document of title if the person complies with subsections (b) and (c), unless and to the extent that the bailee establishes any of the following:
Terms Used In Alabama Code 7-7-403
Bailee: means a person that by a warehouse receipt, bill of lading, or other document of title acknowledges possession of goods and contracts to deliver them. See Alabama Code 7-7-102
Goods: means all things that are treated as movable for the purposes of a contract for storage or transportation. See Alabama Code 7-7-102
Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
Warehouse: means a person engaged in the business of storing goods for hire. See Alabama Code 7-7-102
(1) Delivery of the goods to a person whose receipt was rightful as against the claimant;(2) Damage to or delay, loss, or destruction of the goods for which the bailee is not liable;(3) Previous sale or other disposition of the goods in lawful enforcement of a lien or on a warehouse‘s lawful termination of storage;(4) The exercise by a seller of its right to stop delivery pursuant to Section 7-2-705 or by a lessor of its right to stop delivery pursuant to Section 7-2A-526;(5) A diversion, reconsignment, or other disposition pursuant to Section 7-7-303;(6) Release, satisfaction, or any other personal defense against the claimant; or(7) Any other lawful excuse.(b) A person claiming goods covered by a document of title shall satisfy the bailee’s lien if the bailee so requests or if the bailee is prohibited by law from delivering the goods until the charges are paid.(c) Unless a person claiming the goods is a person against which the document of title does not confer a right under Section 7-7-503(a):
(1) The person claiming under a document shall surrender possession or control of any outstanding negotiable document covering the goods for cancellation or indication of partial deliveries; and(2) The bailee shall cancel the document or conspicuously indicate in the document the partial delivery or the bailee is liable to any person to which the document is duly negotiated.
