Force majeure, three contracts later.
What the post-pandemic litigation wave has taught us about drafting boilerplate that actually performs when the unforeseeable arrives.
Force majeure clauses written before 2020 were, almost without exception, inadequate. They listed enumerated events that did not contemplate a global supply shock, and they relied on notice periods that assumed functioning courier infrastructure.
The post-pandemic redrafts have been instructive. The clauses that have performed under stress share three properties: a non-exhaustive enumeration, a defined notice window with electronic delivery accepted, and a mandatory mediation step before either party can declare frustration.
Boilerplate is not boilerplate when it is tested. The contracts we draft now treat the clause as a real instrument, not a closing flourish.