Phillips Puerto Rico Core Inc. v. Tradax Petroleum Limited (The Oxy Trader) - United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (Mansfield, Kearse and Pratt (Circuit Judges)) - 15 September 1985

“C. & f.” Contract - Whether buyer able to rely on event said to constitute force majeure after shipment - Whether buyer excused from payment on the ground of an immaterial defect in shipping documents

By a contract confirmed by telex dated 3 September 1981 the Plaintiffs (“Phillips”) agreed to buy 25_30,000 metric tons of naphtha from Tradax. The naphtha was located in Skikda, Algeria and the contract was to be “c. & f.” Guayama, Puerto Rico, shipment to be made 20_28 September 1981. The agreement incorporated the International Chamber of Commerce 1980 Incoterms which defined a “c. & f.” contract as one in which the seller arranges and pays for the transport of the goods, but the buyer assumes title and risk of loss at the time of shipment. It also incorporated Tradax’s standard terms, but these did not reach Phillips for several weeks. They included a clause which dealt with delayed shipment or delivery due to force majeure which delayed reception of the goods by the buyer.