Sale of Goods Act, 1930
19. Property passes when intended to pass
(1) Where there is a contract for the sale of specific or
ascertained goods the property in them is transferred to the buyer at such time
as the parties to the contract intend it to be transferred.
(2) For the purpose of ascertaining the intention of the parties
regard shall be had to the terms of the contract, the conduct of the parties
and the circumstances of the case.
(3) Unless a different intention appears, the rules contained in
sections 20 to 24 are rules for ascertaining the intention of the parties as to
the time at which the property in the goods is to pass to the buyer.
Comment: It was one of the terms of the contract
between the parties that the seller would not be liable for any future loss of
goods and that the goods were being dispatched at the risk of the respondent.
The respondent had also obtained insurance of the goods and had paid the policy
premium. He, therefore, intended the goods to be treated as his own so that if
there was any loss of goods in transit, he could validly claim the insurance
money. The weighment of the goods at Hyderabad or the collection of documents
from the bank or payment of price through the bank at Hyderabad were
immaterial, inasmuch as the property in the goods had already passed at Kerala
and it was not dependant upon the payment of price or the delivery of goods to
the respondent. Agricultural Market Committee v. Shalimar Chemical Works Ltd.,
AIR 1997 SUPREME COURT 2502