英文合同中不可抗力条款的约定.doc

.英文合同中不可抗力条款的约定一、什么是不可抗力条款（Force Majeure Clause）合同一经制定，合约双方都希望能够按照合同规定顺利履行合同。但是有时因情势变更，往往会出现一些出乎当事人意料的事情发生，而导致当事人无法履行合同。这种由于当事人所不能控制的事故而导致合同不能履行的，即是不可抗力（Force Majeure），合同中关于这一事项的约定的条款就是不可抗力条款（Force Majeure Clause）。该条款实际上也是一项免责条款。在合同签订后，不是由于当事人的过失或疏忽，而是由于发生了当事人所不能预见的、无法避免和无法预防的意外事故，以致不能履行或不能如期履行合同，遭受意外事故的一方可以免除履行合同的责任或可以延期履行合同，另一方无权要求损害赔偿。“Force Majeure”一词来自于法国民法典第1148条，英文译为：“There is no occasion for damages where, in consequence of force majure or accident the debtor has been prevented from conveying or doing that to which he has obliged or has done what he was debarred from doing.”牛津法律词典是这样解释的：“Irresistible compulsion or coercion. The phrase is used particularly in commercial contracts to describe events possibly affecting the contract and that are completely outside the parties control. Such events are normally listed in full to ensure their enforceability; their may be include *acts of God, fires, failure of suppliers or subcontractors to supply the suppliers under the agreement, and strikes and other labour disputes that interfere with the suppliers performance of an agreement. An express clause would normally excuse both delay and a total failure to perform the agreement.”二、不可抗力条款的基本内容一般来说，不可抗力条款中应当包括以下几个方面的内容：1. 不可抗力发生的原因（种类）；2. 不可抗力发生后通知对方的期限、通知的方法以及应当提交的证明文件；3. 不可抗力发生的免责事项及善后处理事项。（一）不可抗力发生的原因（种类）对于不可抗力条款，约定的越详细越好，有些合同，为了省事，往往只是笼统地规定“This contract is subject to force majeure clause”(合同根据不可抗力条款订定)，这是相当粗糙的。因为对于什么是“不可抗力”，哪些情况属于不可抗力，不同的人理解是不一样的，有些情况对于处于不同法律地位的当事人来说，并不认为是不可抗力，所以不可抗力发生后，一旦有纠纷就会无所适从。并非所有的意外事故都可以视为不可抗力而免除当事人的履行合同的义务，所以对于哪些事故足以构成不可抗力，从而免除当事人履行合同的义务，自然而然地就有必要加以明确的约定，以免发生纷歧争执；那么在不可抗力条款中，应当不厌其烦地一项一项的罗列出来。一般而言，下列事项可以构成不可抗力： strikes(罢工)； lockouts(停工); Acts of God, such as floods, lightning, cyclone, hurricane, and other storms（天灾如水灾、闪电、飓风及风暴）; threat or existence of war, blockade, embargoes or regulations of any governmental authority（战争或者战争的威胁、封港、禁运、政府管制）; other events beyond the control of the parties（其他非人力所能控制的事件）; plague, pestilence, disease, epidemics（疫情、瘟疫、传染病）; civil commotions, governmental interference（骚乱、政府干涉）; shortage of raw materials or other supplies（原料短缺）; fires, explosions, destruction or damage to sellers plant or machinery（卖方工厂或生产设备遭受火灾、爆炸、破坏或者损坏）; shortage of transportation or inability to obtain freight space（无运输工具或者舱位）; other labor troubles or disturbances（其他工人骚扰）;其中有些事项是要有约定，才可以做为不可抗力，比如-，还有机器停顿故障、财政来源不足、成本上高涨、第三者的不履行导致的；另外如果是国有企业做为合同的一方，还应当注意一些事项，比如政府干预、无法获得出口证、进口证书或者其他涉及到政府的事项，因为中国是公有制国家，外方一般不将国有企业无法获得相当政府文件作为不可抗力。（二）不可抗力的通知“Force Majeure”条文要规定由于发生不可抗力而无法履行合同义务的一方在特定的期限内向对方通知。因为不可抗力事件一旦发生，导致一方当事人无法履行合同时，应当尽快通知对方当事人，如果不及时通知对方，置之不理，导致对方遭受更大损失时，仍然不能完全免除其责任。如这样约定：In the event of any such causes arising, the party affected shall give prompt notice to the other party of the cause因为不可抗力事件的发生，而导致合同不能按约履行时，当事人应当迅速通知对方当事人外，必要时还得向对方提供证明文件。这些证明文件通常有以下几种：（1）当地商会或者工会出具的证明；（2）对方国家驻当事人所在地领事馆出具的证明；（3）关于该不可抗力事件新闻报道；（4）其他有证明力的证明。如这样约定：In the event of any such cause arising, documents proving their occurrence or existence shall be submitted by the party to the other party without delay.（三）不可抗力发生后的处理因为不可抗力发生后，导致合同不能顺利履行时，是否就即免除当事人的违约责任呢？或者是推迟合同的履行期限呢？能否替代履行呢？这些都与当事人双方的利益密切相关，所以在签订合同时，应当充分考虑，比如在国际货物买卖中可以做如下的约定：The contract is automatically cancelled as to any unshipped portion in the event that force majeure clause becomes operative.这样规定，如果发生了不可抗力事件，对于未装船的货卖方不能也没有责任再去装船，同时买方也无权要求卖方承担损害赔偿。在这种条款下，如果卖方还没有生产、备货，解除合同，对他就不会有什么影响，但是如果货物已经准备好了，只是因一时的不可抗力，就解除合同，就难免要遭受损失。所以有些买卖合同中的不可抗力条款进一步规定：“如果因为意外事件影响，不能按期装运时，买方同意将装运期限顺延一百天；期满后，如还是不能装运时，买方有权解除合同。”当然顺延的期限不能漫无限制，否则买方将会处于被动之情境。一般情况下，为了顾及公平合理，一方面赋予一方当事人合理的延长期限，以便其有履行合同的机会，延长期满后，另外一方当事人可以解除合同，以免处于久悬未决的状态。对此，华沙牛津规则有这样的规定：The seller shall not be responsible for delay or failure to ship the goods contracted to be sold or any part thereof or to deliver such goods, or any part thereof into the custody of the carrier, as the case may be, arising from force majeure, or from any extraordinary causes, accidents or hindrances of what kind soever or wheresoever or the consequences thereof which it was impossible in the circumstances for the seller to have foreseen or averted. In the event of any of the said causes, accidents or hindrancespreventing, hindering or impeding the production, the manufacture, the delivery to the seller, or the shipment of the goods contracted to be sold or any part thereof or the chartering of any vessel or part of vessel, notice thereof shall be given to the buyer by the seller, and on such notice being given the time for shipment or delivery into the custody of the carrier, as the case may be, shall be extended until the operation of the cause, accident or hindrance preventing, hindering or impeding the production, the manufacture, the delivery to the seller or the shipment of the said goods or any part thereof or the chartering of any vessel or part of vessel has ceased. But if any of these causes, accidents or hindrances continues for more than fourteen days from the time or from the expiration of the period if any, specified in the contract of sale for the shipment of the goods or their delivery into the custody of the carrier, as the case may be, or if no such time or period has been specified in the contract then from the expiration of the reasonable time contemplated in Rule 3, the whole contract of sale or such part thereof as shall remain to be fulfilled by the seller may, at the option of either party, be determined, such option shall be exercised and notice to that effect shall be given by either party to the other party at any time during the seven days next succeeding the period of fourteen days hereinbefore mentioned but not thereafter. And on such notice being given neither party shall have any claim against the other party in respect of such determination.（由于不可抗力、任何特殊原因、事故，或者由于不论何种或何处发生的阻碍，或由此而产生的结果，为当时卖方所不能预见或避免，以致卖方延迟或未能装运全部或部分订售货物或者延迟或未能将全部或部分订售货物，交给承运人保管，卖方对此将不负责任。如果上述原因、事故或障碍，阻止、妨碍或耽误了全部或部分订售货物的生产、制造、交给卖方或装船，或者全部或部分船只的租赁，卖方应将有关情况通知买方，此项通知一经发出，装船时间或交给承运人保管的时间应展延到上述原因、事故或障碍解除时为止。但是上述那些原因、事故或障碍，如延续超过买卖合同规定的装船或交给承运人保管的日期或截止期限十四天（如果合同没有规定此项装船或交给承运人保管的日期或截止期限，则按第三条规定预计合理的期限截止时计算），全部或部分合同是否仍由卖方履行，可由买卖当事人的任何一方选择决定，对此，任何一方都可在上述十四天后的七天内进行抉择并通知对方。此项通知发出后，任何一方将无权由于此项抉择而对另一方提出索赔要求。）三、不可抗力条款的实例1.THE ICC MODEL INTERNATIONAL SALE CONTRACT (Manufactured Goods Intended for Resale)（国际商会国际货物销售合同范本（仅用于旨在转售的制成品） 第13款：Art.13 Force majeure13.1Aparty is not liable for a failure to perform any of his obligations in SO far as he proves(a)that the failure was due to an impediment beyond his controland(b)that he could not reasonable be expected to have taken the impediment and its effects upon his ability to perform into account at the time of the conclusion of the contract，and(c) that he could not reasonably have avoided or overcome it or its effects13.2A party seeking relief shallas soon as practicable after the impediment and its effects upon his ability to perform become known to him，give notice to the other party of such impediment and its effects on his ability to performNotice shall also be given when the ground of relief ceasesFailure to give either notice makes the party thus fmling liable in damages for loss which otherwise could have been avoided13.3Without prejudice to article 10.2a ground of relief under this clause relieves the party failing to perform from liability in damages，from penalties and other contractual sanctions，form the duty to pay interest on money owing as long aS and to the extent that the ground subsists13.4 If the grounds of relief subsist for more than six monthseither party shall be entitled to terminate the contract without notice（第13条不可抗力131一方当事人对其未履行义务可不负责任，如果他能证明：(a)不能履行义务是由非他所能控制的障碍所致，及(b)在订立合同时，不能合理预见到他已把这一障碍及其对他履约的能力产生影响考虑在内，以及(C)他不能合理地避免或克服该障碍或其影响。132请求免责的一方当事人，在他知道了此项障碍及其对他履约能力的影响之后，应以实际可能的速度尽快通知另一方当事人此项障碍及其对他履约能力的影响。当免责的原因消除时也应发出通知。如果未能发出任一通知，则该当事人应承担其原可避免的损失赔偿责任。133在不影响第102条效力的前提下，本款下的免责理由，只要且仅在此限度内该免责事由继续存在，可使未履约方得以免除损害赔偿之责任，免除处罚及其他约定的罚金，免除所欠款项利息支付之责任。134若免责的原因持续存在6个月以上，任何一方均有权不经过通知对方即可终止合同。）2.以下这个案例是笔者制作的英文合同中的不可抗力条款。首先对不可抗力进行定义：“Force Majeure”means:Circumstances beyond the control of the Party affected, including, but not limited to an Act of God, strike, lockout or other industrial disturbance, accident, act of the public enemy, war (whether declared or not), sabotage, blockade, revolution, public riot, lightning, fire, storm, flood, drought, earthquake, landslide, explosion, governmental restraint or action, shortage or unavailability of equipment, material or labour or restrictions thereof or limitations upon the use thereof, delays in transportation caused by anyone of the aforementioned circumstances and any other cause whether of the kind specifically enumerated above or otherwise which is not within the control of the Party affected by such event.（不可抗力事件：为受影响的一方所无法控制的情形，包括但不限于自然的不可抗力、罢工、停工(企业主为抵制工人的要求而停工)或其他的工业上的滋扰和事故、公敌行为、战争（不管有无声明）、阴谋破坏、封锁、革命、公众骚乱、闪电、火灾、风暴、水灾、旱灾、地震、山体滑坡、爆炸、政府管制或行动，设备出现故障而不能使用，材料和劳动力的短缺、或受限，由上述任一原因或其他受影响方无法控制的原因而导致的延期装运。）接着约定不可抗力事件发生后的通知：The Party affected by an Event of Force Majeure shall provide the other Party with full details as soon as he becomes aware of the Event of Force Majeure, including a best estimate of the likely extent and duration of the interference with his activities