Force majeure clauses excuse contract performance when extraordinary events make it impossible. Here...
By Gia Gray · Updated May 2026
Force majeure clauses sat quietly in contracts for decades, barely noticed by most freelancers and small businesses. Then 2020 happened, and suddenly everyone was trying to figure out whether a global pandemic counted as a force majeure event. Courts across the country were flooded with disputes about whether lockdowns, supply chain collapses, and government restrictions excused non-performance under existing contracts.
The answer depended almost entirely on how carefully the clause had been drafted. Here's what you need to know.
A force majeure clause excuses one or both parties from performing their contractual obligations when an extraordinary event outside their control makes performance impossible, illegal, or impractical.
In plain English: if something catastrophic happens that neither party could have predicted or prevented, the force majeure clause lets you pause or exit the contract without being in breach.
Force majeure clauses list the events that trigger them. Common inclusions:
Events that typically do not qualify: economic downturns, a client losing funding, market conditions changing, or simply deciding the project isn't worth doing anymore.
The broader version is far more useful because it: (1) specifies what triggers it, (2) requires notice, and (3) gives both parties an exit if the situation drags on.
Force majeure clauses protect you in two directions. First, if a crisis prevents you from delivering — your studio is destroyed, you're hospitalized, a government lockdown shuts your operation — a force majeure clause may excuse non-performance without triggering kill fees or breach claims. Second, if a client uses a vague force majeure claim to avoid paying for completed work, a well-drafted clause prevents that abuse.
Generate a free freelance contract with a properly drafted force majeure clause included.
Generate Free Contract →It depends on how the clause is drafted. Courts have ruled inconsistently — some held that pandemic-related disruptions qualify, others required that performance be truly impossible (not just harder). Clauses that specifically list 'declared public health emergencies' or 'pandemics' are much more likely to be enforced than vague 'acts of God' language.
Not for work already completed. Force majeure excuses future performance, not payment obligations for services already delivered. If you've done the work, the client owes you for it regardless of subsequent events.
Force majeure is a contractual provision the parties agreed to in advance. Frustration of purpose is a legal doctrine courts apply when no force majeure clause exists — it's harder to invoke and the standard varies by jurisdiction. Having a clear force majeure clause is better than relying on the doctrine.
Understanding one clause makes the next one easier. Here are more plain-English explanations of common contract clauses freelancers encounter: