Bottomry Law and Legal Definition
In Maritime Law, Bottomry is a contract in which a ship owner mortgages the ship’s bottom or keel as a security for the money borrowed to finance a voyage. If the ship in lost during the voyage, then the lender loses his/her money. The loan can be enforced only if the ship survives the voyage. A bottomry contract is also termed as bottomry bond or bottomage bond.
The purpose of a bottomry bond is to use the money raised or borrowed in case of an emergency in a foreign port. Due to the advance in communications, bottomry bonds have now become outdated.
