BAILMENT (for derivation, see BAIL). A delivery of something of the nature of personal property by one party to another, to be held according to the purpose or object of the de l'y, and returned or delivered over when that purlalsp is accomplished. The party delivering is termed the bailor, the recipient. the bailee. A bailment is distinguished from a sale in that the identical thing delivered is to be restored in the same or an altered form, and that title is not transferred. Bailments are generally di vided into three classes, formerly designated by terms derived from the civil law. (1) That for the sole benefit of the !Jailor or the party whom lie represents. This includes: (a) De positum (deposit), a delivery of personal prop erty to be kept by the depositor without reward, and delivered according to the purpose of the trust. (h) Ihttorinfitm (mandate), or a delivery of personal property in regard to which the bailee engages to do some act without compensa tion. (2) That for the sole benefit of the bailee or the party whom lie represents. This is coin modatum (loan), a gratuitous lending of an article for a certain time, to be used by the bailee and returned without recompense. (3) That for the benefit of both parties. This class comprises: (a) Pignns (pledge), a delivery or deposit of personal property as a security for some debt or engagement, as when goods are left with a pawnbroker, or stocks or bonds as collateral security on a note. (b) Locatio con ductio (hiring) for recompense. This embraces four kinds: Locatio rei, the hiring of the use of- the bailed article, as when a person hires a carriage; loeatio eastodia.. the hiring of the keeping or storage of an article, as a deposit in a warehouse; locatio operis faciendi, the hiring of labor or services to be performed on or about the property, as a watch left with a watch maker for repairs: loeatio operis mereium, the carriage of goods for hire, as the work of a common carrier.
The bailee having possession of the chattel, may maintain the proper actions for injuries thereto, while if permanent injury be clone to the chattel, the bailor may prosecute a special action for the loss to his reversionary interest. The important question, however, of the law of bailments is the determination of the obligations and liabilities of the respective parties in their several relationships. Thus, when the bail ment is for the bailor's sole benefit, the bailee is required to exercise but slight care, and is re sponsible only for gross negligence; hut when wholly for the bailee's benefit, in a gratuitous loan of the second class, lie must exercise the greatest care, and is answerable for slight negli gence: when the transaction is reciprocally bene ficial to both parties, the bailee is required to exercise only ordinary care and is answerable only for ordinary neglect. It follows from this
that n bailee, in the absence of special agree ment, is not an insurer of the chattel placed in his hands, and is not responsible for losses or damages necessarily incident In the purpose of the bailment; Ina he is liable for the violation of the obligation imposed by the terms of the contract, or for the misappropriation of the chat tel or the misdireCtion of its use. Bythe common law an exception is made in the case of inn keepers and common carriers. The former, by the necessity of the conditions, was originally made an insurer of the goods of his guest in his keeping, except from losses occurring- by the act of (4,r1, the public enemy, or through the friend or servant of the guest. But this rule has been modified by statute in eonformity with modern conditions, both in England and the United States; and the innkeeper is now generally held only to the exe•cirse of a high degree of care. In many States, by providing a safe deposit and giving proper notice, he may require the guest to deposit his valuables, in default of \Odell the innkeeper's liability does not exceed that of an ordinary bailee. It is also generally recognized that a collation car rier's liability as an insurer against everything except the act of God or the public enemy may, by proper notice and fair and reasonable special contract, he reduced to exclude all losses and injuries except those resulting from his own or his servants' negligence. In the State of New York this doctrine is carried to the ex tent of permitting exception even from those damages resulting from his own negligence, but not from willful wrongdoing. The contract of a carrier of passengers is not a contract of bailment. (See INN, INNKEEPER CARRIER, COM MON.) Consult: Schouler, 7'rcutisc on the Law of Bailments, 3d ed. (Boston. 1897) ; Story, Commentaries on the Law of Bailments, 9th ed. 1878) ; Beal, ',um of Bailments, with notes to Canadian eases (London, 1900).