However, if the aim is to make a party go above and beyond the call of duty, this should be achieved by stating the reason for making him do so, ie. why such a demand is reasonable. Above all this helps to clarify what is actualy expected from the parties, preventing dispute to arise in the first place. Also, in the event of dispute, it prevents the outcome from being dependent on the courts personal views on the reasonable/best debate.

The only question you need ask is whether best endeavours represents a stricter standard that reasonable endeavours. I have no hesitation saying that the two phrases mean that same thing. Coming to a different conclusion requires a tin ear, in terms of the semantics involved, and requires that you consider the question purely on a theoretical rather than a practical level.

I don’t want to start repeating myself on this subject, so I’ll just add the following example: John’s mother is coming to London for a weekend on the town, and she wants to see “Coriolanus.” John tells her, “I’ll do my best to get tickets.” He learns that the show is sold out. Does doing his best require that he purchase tickets from a scalper (or “tout,” for U.K. readers)? Does it require that he pay any price for the tickets, even fifty times the face value?

I suggest that we’d only expect John to do what’s reasonable in the context. And I suggest that the same approach applies when interpreting a best endeavours standard in a contract.

Ken

However, I would like to point out what I see as the main problem with the reasoning presenting in the dictum, even conceding the point that there is a difference in the two standards.

The dictum defines ‘best efforts” as ALL reasonable efforts. Thus, holding a party to such standard would require not only that it choose and use the best of all reasonable endeavors, but that it use ALL reasonable endeavors.

This is potentially even more onerous than I would have imagined “best efforts” to require (if there is a distinction between “best” and “reasonable”). I would have expected “best efforts” to require a party to determine and use the best endeavor among the reasonable set of endeavors.