The coronavirus pandemic has truly been devastating to thousands, but is the pandemic a force majeure event?  Force majeure is an event or effect that cannot be reasonably anticipated or controlled. Essentially, a force majeure event is one that is outside the parties’ control, such as an Act of God.

Currently, a lot of businesses and people are experiencing struggles and difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic. Stay-at-home orders, business closures, and the general altering of everyday life have shown how unanticipated this situation is. Due to these extreme circumstances, a lot of people are seeing if they can get out of their contracts by asserting force majeure. Unfortunately, not everyone will be able to.

Having a force majeure clause in a contract may allow a party to delay or excuse performance. But how do we know that the COVID-19 pandemic is a force majeure event?

Force majeure is not just important from a business-to-business perspective: many airlines aren’t allowing customers to be refunded for flights they haven’t taken due to the pandemic. Many companies are claiming that this pandemic is out their control and they couldn’t possibly be held responsible for the outcome.

In summary, this episode of All Up In Yo’ Business is all about the force majeure clause and, specifically, how it may apply in the context of the coronavirus/COVId-19 pandemic. One you surely don’t want to miss! Contact us today if you need help with looking over your contracts. And be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more All Up In Yo’ Business!

Want to learn more about contracts? Check out: Independent Contractor Agreements.