Force majeure, clause set in three postures

16. FORCE MAJEURE

Posture 1 — balanced, the firm’s preferred line

16.1 Definition. A “Force Majeure Event” means any event or circumstance which (i) is beyond the reasonable control of the Party affected by it; (ii) could not reasonably have been avoided, overcome or provided against by that Party by taking the precautions a prudent person carrying on the same business would have taken; and (iii) prevents or materially delays that Party’s performance of an obligation under this Agreement. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the following are Force Majeure Events where they satisfy those conditions: act of God; earthquake, flood, cyclone, storm, landslide, lightning, drought, fire or explosion; war, whether declared or not, invasion, armed conflict, hostilities, act of a foreign enemy, blockade, embargo, civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, riot, civil commotion or terrorism; epidemic, pandemic, outbreak of infectious disease or public health emergency, and any quarantine, containment measure, lockdown, restriction on movement, closure of premises or other act, order or direction of a Governmental Authority taken in response to any of them; any act, order, direction, expropriation, requisition, embargo, sanction, refusal or revocation of a licence, or change in law taking effect immediately and preventing performance, of a Governmental Authority; nationwide or industry-wide strike, lock-out or labour disturbance not confined to the employees of the affected Party; failure of the public electricity grid, of public telecommunications networks or of the internet backbone, not caused by the affected Party; and interruption or failure of a utility or transport service on which performance depends.