Goods - Definition - Law Dictionary Home Dictionary Definition goods

Definition :

Goods, Computer programs are the product of an intellectual process, but once implanted in a medium they are widely distributed to computer owners. An analogy can be drawn to a compact-disc recording of an orchestral rendition. The music is produced by the artistry of musicians and in itself is not a 'good', but when transferred to a laser-readable disc it becomes a readily merchant-able commodity. Similarly, when a professor deliv-ers a lecture, it is not a good, but, when transcribed as a book, it becomes a good. That a computer program may be copyrightable as intellectual property does not alter the fact that once in the form of a floppy disc or other medium, the program is tangible, moveable and available in the marketplace. The fact that some programs may be tailored for specific purposes need not alter their status as 'goods' because the Code definition includes 'specially manufactured goods', Advent Systems Ltd. v. Unisys Corpn., 925 F. 2d 670 3d

Cir 1991. Associated Cement Companies Ltd. v. Commissioner of Customs, AIR 2001 SC 862: (2001) 4 SCC 593. [Customs Act, 1962, ss. 2 (22) and 12]

Goods, includes unfurnished ships in the course of construction, Schiffachrt -- Treuland GmbH v. H.M. Procurator-General, [1953] AC 232: 1953 (1) All ER 364 PC [See Halsbury's Laws of England, 4th Edn., Vol. 37]

Tangible or movable property other than money, esp. articles of trade or items of merchandise, Black's Law Dictionary, 7th Edn., p. 701.

To become 'goods' an article must be something which can ordinarily come to the market to be bought and sold, Union of India v. Delhi Cloth and General Mills Co. Ltd., AIR 1973 SC 791: (1963) 1 Supp SCR 586.

Goods includes all types of movable properties whether those propertices be tangible or intangible, Tata Constaltancy Services v. State of Andhra Pradesh, (2005) 1 SCC 308.

Electric energy is 'goods'. It can be transmitted, transferred, delivered, stored, possessed etc., in the same way as any other movable property, Commissioner of Sales Tax v. Madhya Pradesh Electricity Board, AIR 1970 SC 732: (1969) 1 SCC 200: (1969) 2 SCR 939.

The timber was 'goods' within the meaning of s. 2(7) of the Sale of Goods Act,1930 and the expression 'sale of goods' in the Constitution in Entry 54, List II, having the same meaning as that expression has in the Sale of Goods Act, sale of timber agreed to be severed under the terms of the contract may be regarded as sale of goods, State of Maharashtra v. Champalal Kishanlal Mohota, AIR 1971 SC 908: (1970) 1 SCC 611: (1971) 1 SCR 46.

Means all kinds of movable property other than actionable claims newspapers, stocks, shares, securities or Government stamps and includes all materials, articles and commodities whether or not to be used in the construction, fitting out, improve-ment or repair of movable or immovable property; and also includes all growing crops grass, trees, plants and things attached to, or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale.[M.P. General Sales Tax Act, 1958, s. 2(g)], State of Madhya Pradesh v. Orient Paper Mills Ltd., AIR 1977 SC 687: (1977) 2 SCC 77: (1977) 2 SCR 149.

The term 'goods' is defined in clause (7) of s. 2 of the Sale of Goods Act as follows:

Goods means every kind of movable property other than actionable claims and money; and includes stock and shares, growing crops, grass and things attached to or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale; The definition of 'goods' given in clause (d) of s. 2 of the Orissa Act is as follows: (d) 'Goods' means all kinds of movable property other than actionable claims, stocks, shares or securities, and includes all growing crops, grass and things attached to or forming part of the land which are agreed before sale or under the contract of sale to be severed; Under both the definitions the term 'goods' means all kinds of moveable property (except the classes of moveable property specifi-cally excluded) and includes growing crops, grass and things attached to or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale, State of Orissa v. Titaghur Paper Mills Company Limited, AIR 1985 SC 1293: (1985) Supp SCC 280: (1985) 3 SCR 26.

Include vessels, aircraft and vehicles, Chowgule and Co. Pvt. Ltd. v. Union of India, AIR 1987 SC 1176: (1987) 1 SCC 730: (1987) 2 SCR 351. [Customs Act, 1962 ss. 22(1) and 46(1)]

It includes all materials, articles, commodities and all other kinds of movable property, but does not in-clude newspapers actionable claims, stocks, shares and securities. [Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (74 of 1956), s. 2 (d)]

It includes livestock, and anything (other than equipment ordinarily used with the vehicle) carried by a vehicle except living persons, but does not include luggage or personal effects carried in a motor car or in a trailer attached to a motor car or the personal luggage of passengers travelling in the vehicle. [Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (59 of 1988), s. 2 (13)]

It includes:

(a) vessels, aircrafts and vehicles;

(b) stores;

(c) baggage;

(d) currency and negotiable instruments; and

(e) any other kind of movable property. [Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), s. 2 (22) (a)]

It includes:

(i) containers, pallets or similar articles of transport used to consolidate goods; and

(ii) animals. (Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993, s. 2)

It means any agricultural, natural or manufactured goods or any goods of handicraft or of industry and includes food stuff. [Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 (48 of 1999), s. 2 (1) (f)]

It means anything which is the subject of trade of manufacture. [Trade Marks Act, 1999, s. 2 (1) (j)]

It means every kind of movable property other than actionable claims and money. [Interest on Delayed Payments to Small Scale and Ancillary IndustriaUndertakings Act, 1993 (32 of 1953), s. 2 (d)]

It means every kind of movable property other than actionable claims and money; and includes stock and shares, growing crops, grass, and things attached to or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale. [Sale of Goods Act, 1930 (3 of 1930), s. 2 (7)]

Goods, in relation to Toxic Chemicals, Precursors or Discrete Organic Chemicals including those Discrete Organic Chemicals containing elements of phosphorous, sulpur or fluorine, means any material, commodity, article or compound consisting of such Toxic Chemicals, Precursors or Discrete Organic Chemicals including those Discrete Organic Chemicals containing elements of phosphorous, sulphur or fluorine and includes materials, commodities, articles, compounds or apparatus used in the production, processing or storing of Toxic Chemicals, Precursors or Discrete Organic Chemicals including those Discrete Organic Chemicals containing elements of phosphorous, sulphur or fluorine. [Chemical Weapons Convention Act, 2000 (34 of 2000), s. 2(e)]

Telephone connection and all other accessories which give access to the telephone exchange with or without instruments are 'goods' within the meaning of s. 2(d) of the Utter Pradesh Act, State of Uttar Pradesh v. Union of India, AIR 2003 SC 1147: (2003) 3 SCC 239 (254). [U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948 s. 2 (d)]

Goods includes all materials, commodities and articles. [Constitution of India, Art. 366(12)]

The debentures, would not come within the purview of the definition of goods as it is simply an instrument of acknowledgment of debt by the company whereby it undertakes to pay the amount covered by it and till then it undertakes further to pay interest thereon to the debenture-holders, R.D. Goyal v. Reliance Industries Ltd., (2003) 1 SCC 81(87). [Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969, s. 2(e), (Prior to 1991 Amendment)]

Telephone connection and all other accessories which give access to the telephone exchange with or without instruments are 'good' within the meaning of s. 2(d) of U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948, State of Uttar Pradesh v. Union of India, (2003) 3 SCC 239; see CST v. M.P. Electricity Board, (1969) 1 SCC 200; State of Andhra Pradesh v. National Thermal Power Corpn. Ltd., (2002) 5 SCC 203; McKinley Telephone Co. v. Cumberland Telephone Co., 152 Wis 359: 140 NW 38: 1913 Wisc Lexis 77.

Means chery kind of movable property other than actionable claims and money. The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, s. 2(f).

In clause (7) of s. 2 of the Sale of Goods Act, 1930 should include electricity, gas and water, Ras Behari v. Emperor, AIR 1936 Cal 753; Country of Durham Electrical Power Distribution Co. v. Commissioners of Inland Revenue, (1909) 2 KB 604, See also Comment-ary on Sales of Goods Act, Pollock and Mulla.

Goods, means all kind of movable property (other than newspapers, actionable claims, stocks and shares and securities) and includes all material, commodities, and articles (including those to be used in the fitting out, improvement or repairs of movable property); and all growing crops, grass or things attached to, or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before the sale or under the contract of sale. [Tamil Nadu General Sates Tax Act, 1959 (1 of 1959), s. 2(j) & (n)]. The word 'goods' for the purposes of imposition of sales tax has been uniformly defined in the various sales tax laws as meaning all kinds of movable property. The word 'property may denote the nature of the interest in goods and when used in this sense means title or ownership is a thing. The word may also be used to describe the thing itself. When used in the definition of 'good' in the different sales tax statues, the word 'property' means the subject-matter of ownership. The same word in the context of a 'sale' means the transfer of the ownership in goods. An actionable is movable property and 'goods' in the wider sense of the term but a sale of an actionable claim would not be subject to the sales tax laws, a claim to the beneficial interest in movable property not in the Vendee's possession is transferred. It is not a sale of goods for the purposes of the sales tax laws, Sunrise Associates v. Govt. of NCT of Delhi, (2006) 5 SCC 603, see Dictionary of Commercial Law by A.H. Hudson (1983 Edn.), also Sale of Goods Act, 1930, s. 2(7); Transfer of Property Act, 1882, ss. 3 and 130; Delhi Sales Tax Act, 1975 (43 of 1975), s. 2(g) & (I).

Means something which can ordinarily come to the market to be bought and sold and is known to the market as such. It cannot mean the case papers, entitling their retention by the lawyer as his lien for the purpose of realizing his fee, R.D. Saxena v. Balram Prasad Sharma, (2000) 7 SCC 264; Also Bailey's large dictionary of 1732; Webster's dictionary and Dr. Johnson's Dictionary. See also C.C.E. v. Eastend Paper Industries Ltd., (1989) SCC 244: 1989 SCC (Tax) 602; Union of India v. Delhi Cloth and General Mills Co. Ltd., AIR 1963 SC 791.

Means every kind of movable property not being newspapers, actionable claims, money stocks, shares securities or lottery tickets and includes live stocks, growing crop, grass and trees and plants including the produce thereof including property in such goods attached to or farming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale, [The Maharashtra Value Added Tax Act, 2005, s. 2(12)]

Means all kinds of movable property (not being newspapers or actionable claims or stocks, shares or securities) and includes live stocks, all materials, articles and commodities and every kind of (whether as goods or in some other form) invoked in the execution of works contract, all intangible commodities and growing crops, grass, standing timber of things attached or farming part of the land, which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale, [The Gujarat Value Added Tax Act, 2003, s. 2(13)]

Goods, Notification No. 123/81-CE exempted capital goods, raw materials, components, consumables etc. Compendiously known as 'goods' from pay-ment of basis excise duty and additional excise duty subject to conditions which further stipulated that exemption shall be granted only if the 'goods' released from 100% export-oriented units were brought directly in to the factory of the licensee and were 'used in the manufacture of the products' to be exported reading the notification in entirety, therefore, two stipulations have to be fulfilled, namely, removal of the 'good' from 100% export-oriented unit to the factory of the license under Form CT-3 and use or participation of said 'goods' in the manufacture or products meant for export. Each notification has to be read on its own terms and merely because the object of a notification is to increase resources of the state, conditions stipulated therein cannot be ignored. The words 'capital assets' are very wide. The include all

types of properties including consumables, raw materials, components etc. However, capital assets become capital goods when used in the manufacture of products. Every capital assets is not capital goods. Hence, the peculiarities of the business or the undertaking are also required to be kept in mind while interpreting the said notification.

It was for the assessee to prove by evidence the participation of AC Sheets, tables, chairs, etc. in the manufacture of filament/cotton yarn which has not been done [Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985, Ch. 53, Central Excise Act, 1944, ss. 3 and 5A, Additional Duties of Excise (Goods of Special Importance) Act, 1957, s. 3; Customs Act, 1962, s. 25]; Commissioner of Central Excise, Allahabad v. Ginni Filaments Ltd., (2005) 3 SCC 378.

The expression 'goods' is not a term of art. Its meaning varies from statute to statute. The term 'good' had been defined in the Act as also in Article 366(12) of the Constitution to include all materials, commodities, and articles. Commodity is an expression of wide connotation and includes everything of use or value which can be an object of trade and commerce. The definition of 'goods' in the Sale of Goods Act is also of wide import which mean the general property in goods and not merely a special property it is not much in dispute that 'goods' would comprehend tangible and intangible properties, materials, commodities, and articles and also corporeal and incorporeal materials, articles and commodities. If a distinction is sought to be made between tangible and intangible properties, materials, commodities and articles and also corporeal and incorporeal materials, the definition of goods will have to be rewritten as comprising tangible goods only which is impermissible. In the constitution goods as such is not defined. When the word 'includes' is word in an interpretation clause, it must be construed as comprehending not only such things they signify according to their nature and import but also those things which the interpretation clause declares that they shall include. Indian law does not make any distinction between tangible property and intangible property 'Goods' may be tangible or intangible property. A programme would become goods provided. It has the attributes thereof having regard to (a) its utility; (b) capable of being bought and sold; and (c) capable of being transmitted, transferred delivered, stored and possessed. If a software whether customized or non-customised satisfies these attributes, the same would be goods. Unlike the American Courts, the Supreme Court of India has also not gone into the question of severability. What is essential for an article to become goods is its marketability, Tata Consultancy Services v. State of Andhra Pradesh, (2005) 1 SCC 308; Associated Cement Companies Ltd. v. Commissioner of Customs, (2001) 4 SCC 593; [Also Constitution of India, Art. 366(12); Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957 (6 of 1957), s. 2(1)(h); Sales of Goods Act, 1930 (3 of 1930)]; Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. v. Union of India, (2006) 3 SCC 14.