THE F1 COVID THREAD: Will GP be cancelled?

[Peter Mallett]

*sigh*

It's England and Wales. And you have to read the contract which is why I said I'd simplified it. But, since I've been attending webinars on this very subject I can tell you that so far nobody has got away with "change of law" as an excuse for non performance. One reason is that whenever these things happen under contract law the parties have to mitigate. I can cite many cases that support me but as my rates are quite high I'll leave it there. Happy to provide advice should anyone require my professional services.

[wnut]

Sorry Peter

Just for my own info.

Can you be held liable for not performing an illegal act specified in a contract?


Your fee is in the post.

[Peter Mallett]

Lol.

Define "illegal".

[wnut]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Lol.

Define "illegal".

In this case, a gathering our political masters have decided in their wisdom may not happen, make it a criminal offence to disobey their legislation and use the imperial storm troopers to enforce?

[Peter Mallett]

Yes, but that isn't anything to do with the organisation of the event. Difficult isn't it?

[Armco Bender]

Define "illegal".

When its a lamb not a sheep is what the Judge said last time.

[Peter Mallett]

Again?

Think of it this way. It's not illegal to go to the office or work on the building site. It is a safety requirement to observe the social distancing rules and/or take the necessary precautions. So, you can organise a race but you can't have spectators. This of course is the case in the UK at present (all countries).

So, just because it's more difficult, or you won't make any money, it's not force majeure.

[wnut]

Essentially


Take a lotto ticket at a court near you.

Jurisdictional issues will be interesting too.

Melbourne will be interesting in that they had an event and the FIA / Liberty pulled the plug, good to see how the conflicting precedents work out.

[Peter Mallett]

Yes indeed, although another point is the law of the contract since these are international contracts. Any clauses will be determined in accordance with the law of the contract, rather than the law of the land.

[Moneyseeker]

Surely the promoters knew that NO global championship was going to visit either country in the current situation?

[Peter Mallett]

Yes but they signed the contract before the pandemic happened.

[Lancsbreaker]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Yes indeed, although another point is the law of the contract since these are international contracts. Any clauses will be determined in accordance with the law of the contract, rather than the law of the land.

Don't most contracts specify which country's legal system will be applicable in determining contractual terms ?

[Moneyseeker]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Yes but they signed the contract before the pandemic happened.

Yes, but have been almost in denial since.

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[Peter Mallett]

Originally Posted by Lancsbreaker

Don't most contracts specify which country's legal system will be applicable in determining contractual terms ?

Yes and we dont know which one is applicable to F1.

[Peter Mallett]

Originally Posted by Moneyseeker

Yes, but have been almost in denial since.

Sent from my SM-T580 using Tapatalk

Indeed,

[wnut]

Originally Posted by Lancsbreaker

Don't most contracts specify which country's legal system will be applicable in determining contractual terms ?

Bernie probably had a deal with "most wonderful country Khazakstan" ( from Borat) to ensure he got the results out of the courts he wanted.

[Peter Mallett]

Lol, they use the Russian Civil Code. Another issue is the seat of Arbitration, assuming they have a dispute process, because that determines the law covering any disputes.

I confess this conversation is more fun than the events IMO.

[chillibowl]

Its been very fun to read. Thank you

Would this be something the FIA dictates? Contracts are effectively signed in France/French law?

Or is it like the driver contract board which is based in Switzerland I think?

Also about the race contracts...i would have thought that race cancellations/postponements had more to do with their insurance carriers although from what i understanding most if not all policies don't consider pandemics as a reason to pay out for any resulting loss of business?

[Peter Mallett]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

Its been very fun to read. Thank you

Would this be something the FIA dictates? Contracts are effectively signed in France/French law?

Or is it like the driver contract board which is based in Switzerland I think?

Also about the race contracts...i would have thought that race cancellations/postponements had more to do with their insurance carriers although from what i understanding most if not all policies don't consider pandemics as a reason to pay out for any resulting loss of business?

Well the country where you sign the contract has nothing to do with the law of the contract, so I don't know what jurisdiction they use. As this is an international series, racing all over the world, I'd suggest English law since it is the main (much to French annoyance) business law. Insurances are a contractual requirement in any agreement but to trigger them you need an insurable event. Otherwise it has to be a settlement (contract variation) between the parties.

[Mike Harte]

And to add to Peter's comments, it has to be borne in mind that the teams' and circuits' (race promoters') contracts are with FOM, not the FIA. And FOM, owned now by Liberty, are based in the UK.

[Casper]

What is the position if a GP is cancelled by the Government and not the promoter? Further to this question what would happen if the Government decided not to allow the F1 event to run in their country for the projected time of any existing contracts the promoter may have? I can see money that used to be spent by governments to enable F1 events might not be available in some countries because the live audience numbers either are limited or just not interested due to the health risks involved.

I doubt very much if the AGP will run next year and there will be no way the date will be shifted as the current issues in Victoria are extremely serious and once it is under control the governement will in all likelyhood just not allow the event at all. The general consensus here is though the announcement is yet to be made the AGP is a dead duck for perhaps two years at least.

The current problem was caused largely because complacency stepped in and people thought the worst was over so there is no way the government is going to allow that to happen again. Oz is basicaly going to be a gaol for perhaps the next two years or a vaccine is found. It looks like anyone entering has to pay for their own quarantine expenses ($3000AUD) as well which is going to put a lot of people off the idea of coming here.

[Peter Mallett]

Lots of questions and only the contract wording will allow us the answer. Effectively if the law is changed to ban motorsport then the organisers can claim a change in law. But it really does depend on the words in the contract.

In my world this whole thing is creating a new legal and contractual concept. Unfortunately some folks are sticking with the contract which won't assist in the long run.

[Richard C]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Lots of questions and only the contract wording will allow us the answer. Effectively if the law is changed to ban motorsport then the organisers can claim a change in law. But it really does depend on the words in the contract.

In my world this whole thing is creating a new legal and contractual concept. Unfortunately some folks are sticking with the contract which won't assist in the long run.

Along the lines of contract language. Imagine the impact this pandemic will have/is having on future language.

Richard

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

In my world this whole thing is creating a new legal and contractual concept. Unfortunately some folks are sticking with the contract which won't assist in the long run.

It strikes me that with this Liberty are working with most race organisers rather than arguing over who wins a contract battle. All interested in the longer term for their mutual benefit. Brazil being a notable exception.

[Peter Mallett]

Originally Posted by Richard Casto

Along the lines of contract language. Imagine the impact this pandemic will have/is having on future language.

Richard

Indeed. In fact a lot of organisations are suggesting collaboration rather than strict contractual arguments. FIDIC in particular.