Opinion ID: 2103439
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Beyond Contemplation of the Agreement

Text: Not unlike the manner implied duties give rise to the exception above, the mutual assent necessary for every contract gives rise to its own related exception. Delays and obstructions not within contemplation of the parties at the time the agreement was executed necessarily lie beyond the contract's intended scope. (See Annot., 74 A.L.R.3d at 215.) Such delays and obstructions and their causes have been held to remain actionable despite no-damage-for-delay clauses. See Annot., 74 A.L.R.3d at 215. Reasonable foreseeability is the touchstone of the exception. The contracting parties' relationship and its objectives and attendant circumstances must be taken into account. (See Annot., 74 A.L.R.3d at 215.) Only unforeseeable delays and obstructions or those not naturally arising from performance of the work itself or the subject of the contract come within the exception. See Annot., 74 A.L.R.3d at 215. Like that above, the immediate exception springs from the elemental foundation of the parties' agreement. It, too, is an essential mechanism in enforcing the contracting parties' expressed intent. We therefore conclude such an exception should also be recognized in Illinois.