In real estate, force majeure refers to a contractual clause that allows parties to suspend or terminate their obligations when certain events beyond their control occur, making performance inadvisable, commercially impracticable, illegal, or impossible.
What is a Force Majeure Clause? A force majeure (pronounced “forss ma-zhoor”) clause is a provision in a contract that allows one or both parties to excuse (or sometimes delay) their performance obligations if circumstances beyond their control arise. These circumstances are typically called “force majeure events.”
Either Party shall be excused from performance and shall not be in default in respect of any obligation hereunder to the extent that the failure to perform such obligation is due to a Natural Force Majeure Event.
A "force majeure" clause (French for "superior force") is a contract provision that relieves the parties from performing their contractual obligations when certain circumstances beyond their control arise, making performance inadvisable, commercially impracticable, illegal, or impossible.
For events to constitute the use of force majeure, they must be unforeseeable, external to contract parties, and unavoidable. Force majeure means “greater force” and is related to an act of God, an event for which no party can be held accountable.
The major difference in such cases is that, without a force majeure clause, the party that wants to be released from contract obligations has the burden of proof, which means that this party must prove their argument is correct. If the other contracting parties do not agree, this could lead to litigation.
Neither Party shall be liable for failure of or delay in performing obligations set forth in this Agreement, and neither shall be deemed in breach of its obligations, if such failure or delay is due to natural disasters or any causes beyond the 5 reasonable control of either Party.
Nevertheless, THE FORCE MAJEURE EVENT has severely limited _____________'s ability to PERFORM OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE CONTRACT to the point where invoking force majeure is necessary. ingly, we write to request NATURE OF RELIEF SOUGHT due to the unforeseen impact of THE FORCE MAJEURE EVENT.
These may include earthquakes, floods, fire, plague, Acts of God (as defined in the contract or in applicable law) and other natural disasters. These are events which are not within the control of the Host Government.
Because the concept is foreign, lawyers who review or draft contracts governed by U.S. law should start with the assumptions that 1) principles of force majeure will not be implied in a contract that does not expressly provide for them, and 2) U.S. courts will interpret and apply force majeure provisions narrowly.