A US dollar deposit with an Australian bank in Sydney creates a debt situated in Australia governed by Australian law, notwithstanding that interbank transfers in US dollars are effected through correspondent banks in New York. Such a debt cannot be attached by process served on the debtor bank's correspondent bank in New York. A force majeure clause does not excuse a bank from repaying a deposit where the contemplated method of performance (interbank transfer through a particular correspondent bank) is affected, but alternative methods of performance remain available. The distinction between mutual expectations about how performance will occur and the contractual definition of the obligation itself is critical to the construction of force majeure clauses.
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