As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads across the globe and brings about government prevention and control measures in China, questions arise as to whether parties affected by the pandemic might be excused from contract performance and what are the legal grounds for such excuse.  In this newsletter, TianTong’s cross-border dispute resolution team explores force majeure and “change in circumstances” doctrines under Chinese law and their applicability to “COVID-19 related” delays and failures of contract performance.  Additionally, the newsletter features recent Chinese law updates, including Supreme People’s Court’s recent guidelines on the handling of force majeure claims and other contractual cases arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A copy of the May 2020 newsletter is available here.