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International Sales Contracts - COVID-19 Pandemic and Force Majeure

Client Alert

Q: What is force majeure in the context of a contract?

A: Generally speaking, a force majeure clause is a contract provision that relieves a party from performing its contractual obligations when certain circumstances beyond its control arise, making performance inadvisable, commercially impracticable, illegal, or impossible.

Q: If a party enters into an international commercial contract and the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented or delayed performance by such party, is such party excused from performing?

A: It depends. Does the contract for sale of goods stipulate that the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (“CISG”) is the determinative governing law, or, by default the CISG governs?

The CISG generally applies if the parties to a contract are from different signatory countries (unless the parties expressly waive its applicability), or when private international law provisions default to the CISG. The United States is a signatory country to the CISG.  Specifically, CISG Article 79 provides that “[a] party is not liable for a failure to perform any of his obligations if he proves that the failure was due to an impediment beyond his control and that he could not reasonably be expected to have taken the impediment into account at the time of the conclusion of the contract or to have avoided or overcome it, or its consequences.” The treatment of impediment under the CISG is different from the treatment under common law (see below). Generally, four conditions must be satisfied in order for a party to assert the force majeure protection under the CISG. First, the impediment must be beyond the party’s control. Secondly, the impediment is unforeseeable at the time the contract was signed (thus, a party probably would not prevail in court if it enters into a contract today and claims that it cannot perform under the contract due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Thirdly, the impediment and its consequences could not be reasonably avoided or overcome. Lastly, the non-performance of the party is the result of the impediment.  

Q: What if the contract does not contain an express force majeure clause or the CISG does not apply to the contract?

A: Consider other options under U.S. law to excuse non-performance.

Under Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code (“UCC”) (Section 2-615), a seller may be excused from delay or non-delivery of the goods if performance “has been made impracticable” by either (i) the occurrence of an event “the nonoccurrence of which was a basic assumption on which the contract was made” or (ii) good faith compliance with foreign or domestic government regulation. Can the COVID-19 pandemic and/or compliance with the governmental health orders be used to excuse performance under the UCC? Perhaps, but analysis should be done on a case by case basis.

The common law doctrines of “frustration” and “impossibility” may be invoked, but they have higher thresholds to overcome. Additionally, states in the U.S. apply different treatments of these concepts.

Some jurisdictions focus on whether the impossibility of performance was foreseeable at the time the contract was entered. Additionally, the contract must be consummated based on the assumption that the event (which rendered performance impossible) would not occur. Some states expand the impossibility defense to include the doctrine of impracticability (see the UCC discussion above).

The doctrine of “frustration of purpose” generally provides where the breaching party finds that the purposes for which it bargained have been frustrated to the extent that the breaching party is not receiving the benefit of the bargain for which it contracted; i.e., the frustration destroyed the purpose of the contract. Some jurisdictions also require that an event resulting in such frustration of purpose is unforeseeable and beyond the parties’ control.

If you have any questions about force majeure, please contact Robert Q. Lee at rqlee@bmdpl.com or 407.232.6881.


Supreme Court Issues Major False Claims Act Decision

Telehealth Flexibility Updates: HIPAA, DEA, and CMS

The Covid-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) officially ended on May 11, 2023. But what does that mean for telehealth, a field that expanded exponentially during the PHE? Fortunately, many of the flexibilities will remain intact, at least temporarily. This client alert presents a brief overview of the timelines that providers need to follow, but for a more comprehensive review of telehealth flexibilities and when they will end

WEBINAR SERIES RECAP | Ending the Public Health Emergency + Post-Pandemic Check-Up

Some may take the position that the rest of the country already returned to a new “normal” following the COVID-19 pandemic.  But healthcare providers continue to implement COVID protocols and navigate the ever-changing healthcare regulations at both the federal and state levels.  It is important for healthcare providers to take time for a “Healthcare Check-Up” with the start of 2023 and the ending of the Public Health Emergency (“PHE”).

Sharp Rise in False Claims Act Cases - Navigating the FCA Waters

Recently, on April 18, 2023, the United States Supreme Court heard arguments regarding the FCA’s scienter, or mental state, requirement. To prove violation of the FCA, the statute requires that a defendant “knowingly” file false claims for payment. The term “knowingly” is defined within the statute to mean a person that acts with actual knowledge, deliberate ignorance, or reckless disregard. Circuit courts are split on how to interpret and apply the knowledge element of the FCA, and based on the Supreme Court’s decision, there will be a large impact on healthcare defendants and their businesses as well as anyone who contracts with, or receives money from, a federal program. A broader interpretation of the FCA would unnecessarily target and stifle healthcare, and other businesses, for simple errors in daily operations. This goes against the intended application of the FCA, which was to prevent fraudulent activity.

Areas of Opportunity in Columbus: Highlights from the Columbus Opportunity Summit

On April 27, 2023 Columbus Business First held its annual Columbus Opportunity Summit, bringing together business and economic development leaders to provide an update on how Central Ohio is preparing for expected growth in the coming years, an issue heightened by the arrival of Intel at its 1,000 acre site in Licking County, just outside of Columbus. The site will be home to two new chip factories with room to grow to a total of eight factories and is a $20 Billion investment.