Thing is, is your opening Wordle gambit always Villa?
(I'm at desperation stage here...you blocked the wordle thread and I need to know for my mental health)
If circumstances effecting the delivery of contract go way beyond the control of the concerned parties force majuere seems reasonable. There is no control over trump
They probably have to import raw materials, all major sources of titanium are outside the US, finished components that go into parts, precision instruments, the list goes on and on.
I assume that the company has signed a contract to supply widget A for $X, but can no longer supply widget A for the agreed price and still make a profit, so they want out of the contract?
Presumably not to trigger it but I think the point @davidallengreen.bsky.social is making is that the *circumstances* in which it could be triggered would have been agreed by both sides and written into the contract.
So beware having strong opinions on whether this is a Force Majeure event for a particular contract, for one cannot know without seeing the wording of the contract.
And some wide Force Majeure clauses would indeed cover this situation.
I was thinking that yesterday. If you deal with a global supply chain, as aerospace companies do, would it really be that odd to have some kind of extreme political risk written into a Force Majeure clause? Although I bet when drafted they didn't think the extreme political risk would be the US
Having exhausted legal commentators of all possible constitutional law commentary, the second Trump administration now moves on to contract law topics.
We used to enjoy concocting hypothetical FM scenarios in construction contract law whilst studying for the ARB & RIBA chartetships circa 2019. Little did we know in 12 months’ time EVERYTHING would be FM by virtue of Covid-19
Thanks for the warning. My instinct was that it was nonsense to suggest this was force majeur. Whatever the contract says, I suspect the other parties to it are going to feel well and truly shafted.
It's paid by the importer - if the contract is covering something Howett import into the US and then supply from their distribution centre, they are paying the tariff.
Ofc - this is wild speculation on my part as I have no idea how these contracts are set up.
My point being it is often raised by one party in commercial contracts and quickly disappears as the circumstances don’t warrant it, as every corporate lawyer I’ve ever dealt with has said “you never want to rely on a FM clause” .
This is a decent overview, and has an example clause. Note the 'but not restricted to'. Lawyers would then focus on the nature of the events listed, and consider whether the FM event claimed amounts to a similar nature. Other contract FM clauses are available.
Comments
(I'm at desperation stage here...you blocked the wordle thread and I need to know for my mental health)
I assume that the company has signed a contract to supply widget A for $X, but can no longer supply widget A for the agreed price and still make a profit, so they want out of the contract?
There is no standard definition. It is whatever the parties agree it to be, and I have seen many wide force majeure clauses that would cover this.
DJT was 'saved by God' when the bullet missed, so technically - he must be doing god's work for him and as such whatever he does can justify a FM...
FM is an agreed provision.
One party can then invoke it, but it remains an agreed provision.
I guess there's a calculation going on.
Just trying to look on the positive side.
But in essence it is whatever the parties to that particular contracts say it is.
There is no one autonomous standard definition.
And if triggered, it can allow parties to just walk away from that particular contract.
And some wide Force Majeure clauses would indeed cover this situation.
The answer is: yes, for some contracts, if such an eventuality was what the parties included in that contract’s Force Majeure clause.
What joy.
It's in every company's self-interest to look at Force Majeure.
It's in society's interest not to, as it would send further shockwaves through the economy.
Ofc - this is wild speculation on my part as I have no idea how these contracts are set up.
https://www.vauxhalltavern.com/events/event/saturdays-at-the-rvt-29/
https://ppp.worldbank.org/public-private-partnership/sites/default/files/2024-09/Forcemajeurechecklist.pdf
I suspect you're going to say it all depends on what's in the contract! 😉
The consequence of there being a Force Majeure event is also provided for by the contract.
We did a law module as part of my engineering degree. It taught us that there are legal aspects and they are best left to a lawyer.
And they were spot on.
Paying a specialist often works out cheaper overall.