Force majeure (FM) clauses typically address circumstances outside a contracting party’s control that affect the ability to perform, and provide for the relevant obligations to be suspended and/or the contract to be cancelled. FM clauses have been the subject of considerable focus in the light of disruption arising from the pandemic. An aspect that has received less attention is the application of FM clauses to political instability and civil unrest or conflict. There are, very sadly, numerous recent incidences of this, from riots in Washington DC and Northern Ireland to armed conflict in Nigeria and Mozambique.

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