Force Majeure: Boiler Plate Clause Or Panacea For Polycrisis

Force Majeure, has gained its spot back on the front-page news once again within the same decade due to the ongoing war in West Asia. Last invoked at this scale during the pandemic, Force Majeure is no longer a boiler plate clause, many times overlooked at the time of signing of any contract.

For anyone unaware of the concept of Force Majeure it is a French term which literally translates to a “superior force”. In the international law of contracts, it refers to a clause which exempts the parties under a contract from liability due to non-performance of obligations occurring in the event of an extraordinary or uncontrollable circumstances such as war, natural disasters or pandemic. It is wider in concept than its sister phrase - ‘vis major’ which means an Act of God. It is a safety net which covers Acts of God and such other situations which cannot be anticipated or controlled, and which can also be man-made. Depending on the clause, invocation of Force Majeure clause could lead to