Question

1. What is the “ordinary care under the circumstances” test for a bailee’s liability when the bailed goods are not returned? 2. What is the tripartite test?

Answer 1

1. The basic rule is that when the bailee's time for possession of them is over, the bailee is expected to return the bailed goods to its owner and he is considered to be responsible if the goods are not returned. Yet allowing the delivery of goods by a bailee does not mean that he is responsible for their safekeeping irrespective of what. The bailment law does not apply an absolute liability standard: the bailee is not a security insurer for the goods; its liability depends on the circumstances. Some courts say the liability of the bailee is the straightforward standard of "ordinary care under the circumstances." Whether the bailee has exercised such care becomes the question. She's not liable for the loss if she did.

2. The tripartite test is required only in new cases where it is not clear whether a duty of care is owed on the basis of existing case law. Negotiated a tripartite deal with its trading partner with immediate effect of the first and second parts and five years later of the last part