The UN Convention on Contracts for the International Carriage of Goods Wholly or Partly by Sea 2008 (the Rotterdam Rules) recognises electronic bills of lading, which means that for the first time eB/Ls are treated as the legal and functional equivalent of paper bills of lading. The Convention requires ratification by at least 20 states, and will enter into force one year after the 20^th ratification. To date, two countries, Spain and Togo have ratified the Convention and 22 states, including the US, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Greece have signed but not yet ratified it. An article written by essDOCS General Counsel on eB/Ls and the Rotterdam Rules can be found here.