Answer to Question #108295 in Law for ANAMIKA PRASAD

Question

A painter send’s his paintings for remounting to XYZ shop, and be returned to him by June 15, 2017, to
be in time for an exhibition. .The job does not get completed on time due to adverse weather conditions
and some delay on part of the shopkeeper. The painting is delivered on 17th June, 2017. Judge the
case.

Answer 1

A breach of contract occurs when one party or both parties fail to perform their obligation under the contract in whole or in part or when the contract becomes impossible to perform. A party to a contract is excused from paying damages if the non performance of that party was beyond his control, or could not be reasonably foreseen at the time of conclusion of the contract by that party, or neither the impediment nor its consequences could have been avoided or overcome by the non-performing party. This is known as force majeure and it protects a party from liability if non-performance was a result of external, unforeseen and unavoidable events.

However, the non-performance of a contract due to an impossible occurrence does not necessitate the excuse of that party from the liability of damages that result from the breach. In this case, there is material breach of contract and the painter is likely to be relieved from the duty of paying XYZ shop for failing to deliver the painting on time for exhibition.