The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted commercial activity on a
global scale, challenging contracting parties' ability to
fulfil their legal obligations. Force majeure clauses and
frustration principles may provide some relief to those which may
otherwise incur liability because of non-performance.
What is a force majeure clause?
A force majeure clause enables the parties to a
contract to suspend or terminate their obligations where the
occurrence of exceptional events or circumstances make the
performance of the contract impossible or radically different from
that which was undertaken by the contract.
There is no presumption of a force majeure event and
parties that wish to include a force majeure clause in a
contract should specifically define the kinds of supervening
occurrences that would constitute a 'force
majeure' or 'superior force'. Parties could tailor
the clause to include events that may be unique to their
circumstances. Occurrences generally accepted
