NEWSLETTER-2020-metin

An Update from the ICC: The ICC Force Majeure and Hardship Clauses 2020* Prof. Dr. H. Ercüment Erdem Introduction On March 25, 2020, the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) published the new force majeure and hardship clauses: ICC Force Majeure and Hardship Clauses 2020 1 (“2020 Clauses”). The 2020 Clauses update the ICC Force Majeure and Hardship Clauses 2003 (“2003 Clauses”), offering a simpler presentation and expanded options to suit various companies’ needs 2 . The work on the update began with the creation of the short form (“Short Form”) of the ICC Force Majeure Clause 2003 (“FM Clause 2003”) to be directly incorporated into contracts. This was then fol- lowed by the revision of the FM Clause 2003, as well as the ICC Hard- ship Clause 2003 (“Hardship Clause 2003”), to accompany the Short Form. In the ICC Force Majeure Clause 2020 (“FM Clause 2020”) and the ICC Hardship Clause 2020 (“Hardship Clause 2020”), the language and mechanism are simplified. The 2020 Clauses can be included in contracts, or incorporated by reference, by stating, “The ICC Force Majeure Clause (Long Form) / The ICC Hardship Clause is incorporated in the present contract.” The parties may also use these clauses as the basis for drafting a tailor- made clause, which takes into account their specific needs. Should the parties prefer a shorter clause for force majeure, they can include * Article of March, 2020 1 Clauses are available at https://iccwbo.org/content/uploads/sites/3/2020/03/icc- forcemajeure-hardship-clauses-march2020.pdf. 2 Erdem, H. Ercüment : “Revision of the ICC Force Majeure and Hardship Clause” , Dossier XVII: Hardship and Force Majeure in International Commer- cial Contracts, Paris 2018, p. 121 ff. for detailed information on this subject.