Meaning and Classification of Goods

Meaning of Goods: under the Act, "goods" means every kind of movable property other than actionable claims (like a debt owed to someone) and money; it includes stock and shares, growing crops, grass, and things attached to or forming part of the land that are agreed to be severed (cut/separated) before sale or under the contract of sale. In short, goods are movable, tangible or intangible property that is not money and not a mere legal right to sue for a debt.

Classification of Goods — the Act classifies goods primarily by whether or not they exist and are identified at the time the contract of sale is made:

(A) Existing Goods — goods that are owned or possessed by the seller at the time of the contract. These are further divided into:

• Specific goods — goods identified and agreed upon at the time the contract is made (e.g. "this particular second-hand motorcycle with this registration number").
• Ascertained goods — goods that were originally part of an unidentified larger lot, but have since been specifically identified and set apart for the contract after the contract was made (e.g. 50 out of a warehouse of 500 identical sacks of rice, once those 50 have actually been separated and marked out).
• Unascertained goods — goods described only by a general description or type, not yet specifically identified or set apart (e.g. "50 sacks of rice out of a lot of 500 in my warehouse", with no particular sacks earmarked). …