1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Charter-party

CHARTER-PARTY (Lat. charta partita, a legal paper or instrument, “divided,” i.e. written in duplicate so that each party retains half), a written, or partly written and partly printed, contract between merchant and shipowner, by which a ship is let or hired for the conveyance of goods on a specified voyage, or for a definite period. (See Affreightment.)