WHY YOU NEED FORCE MAJEURE CLAUSE IN CONTRACTS

WHY YOU NEED FORCE MAJEURE CLAUSE IN CONTRACTS

No business relationship starts with the expectation of disaster. Yet floods happen. Pandemics shut down economies. Wars break out. Riots erupt. Strikes cripple operations. Governments issue directives that halt businesses overnight.

Force majeure refers to unforeseeable events beyond the control of the parties such as natural disasters, fire, flood, epidemic/pandemic, war, civil unrest, strikes, acts of Government or any event that makes performance impossible, illegal or radically different from what was agreed.

A properly drafted force majeure clause in a Contract/Agreement suspends contractual obligations, removes liability for breach, extends performance time, allows termination if prolonged or fairly allocates risk between the parties.

Flooding, fuel scarcity, policy changes, regulatory shutdowns and public health emergencies are real business risks.

Nigerian courts will not imply it into your contract. Once performance fails, you are exposed to breach of contract claims and damages.

Falling back on the doctrine of frustration is dangerous because it applies only in rare situations where performance becomes completely impossible, not merely difficult or costly.

Without force majeure, you bear full legal responsibility, even when events are clearly beyond human control.

In contract drafting, what you leave out can be more dangerous than what you include.

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Phone: +234(0)7030868694 (Calls & Whatsapp)
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