After the pandemic, every couple planning a wedding should understand force majeure clauses — the 'act of God' provisions that determine what happens to your deposit and booking when circumstances beyond your control make your event impossible. Many wedding venue contracts still use vague, one-sided force majeure language that protects the venue but leaves couples bearing all the financial risk. The venue keeps your $10,000 deposit because a hurricane made the road impassable? Whether that's legal depends entirely on what the force majeure clause says — or doesn't say.
What is a Force Majeure?
A wedding venue contract is a service agreement for the use of a specific location on a specific date for your wedding ceremony and/or reception. Force majeure ('superior force') is a contractual provision that excuses one or both parties from performing their obligations when extraordinary events beyond their control make performance impossible or impracticable. In US contract law, force majeure is not implied — it must be explicitly included in the contract, and its scope is limited to the specific events listed.
Red flags to watch for
A one-sided force majeure clause means the venue can cancel due to unforeseen events and keep your deposit, but if you need to cancel for the same type of event, you're treated as a voluntary cancellation.
Many pre-2020 contracts list natural disasters and war but not pandemics, government shutdowns, or public health emergencies. If the event isn't listed, the clause may not apply.
Even when force majeure applies, some contracts allow the venue to retain all deposits and only offer a future credit — often with an expiry date.
Giving the venue unilateral power to decide whether an event qualifies as force majeure removes your ability to invoke the clause yourself.
If force majeure forces a postponement, you should be able to reschedule at the originally contracted rate. Some venues require rebooking at current prices, which can be significantly higher.
Your legal rights
In the US, force majeure is governed by state contract law, not a uniform federal statute. Under the common law doctrine of impossibility (or impracticability under the Restatement (Second) of Contracts §261), a party may be excused from performance when an event makes it impracticable, provided the event was not foreseeable and the party did not assume the risk. The UCC §2-615 provides similar relief for goods contracts but generally does not apply to service contracts like venue hire. State-specific consumer protection laws may also apply — for example, New York General Business Law §396-z regulates certain event contracts. Some states enacted emergency executive orders during COVID-19 that affected force majeure interpretation for event contracts.
Questions to ask before you sign
- 1Does the force majeure clause apply equally to both parties — venue and couple?
- 2What specific events are listed as force majeure triggers, and do they include pandemics and government orders?
- 3If force majeure is triggered, do I receive a full refund, partial refund, or only a credit toward a future date?
- 4If we need to reschedule due to force majeure, is the rescheduled event at the original contracted price?
- 5Who determines whether a force majeure event has occurred — is it mutual, or at the venue's sole discretion?
- 6Is there event cancellation insurance available, and what does it typically cover?
Disclaimer: This guide is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Contract law varies by jurisdiction and individual circumstances. Always consult a qualified legal professional before making decisions based on this information.