Small and large, the decisions in such cases shape the way American’s do business every day. Example Breach of Contract CasesĬourts in the United States are virtually inundated with breach of contract cases. Specific performance is most often ordered in a contract involving something for which a value is difficult to determine, such as land or an unusual or rare item of personal property. Specific performance may be any court-ordered action, forcing the breaching party to perform or provide exactly what was agreed to in the contract. He may instead request the court to order “ specific performance” of the terms of the contract. In certain cases, an aggrieved party may not be made whole through the award of monetary damages. This enables Jane to sell the sewing machine to someone else, or potentially file a lawsuit against Amanda for breach of contract. Following this communication, Jane can reasonably assume that Amanda is in anticipatory breach. On April 25th, Amanda tells Jane that she cannot come up with the money on time. Jane agrees to sell her antique sewing machine to Amanda, and the two agree on the purchase price of $1,000, the sale to occur on May 1st. An anticipatory breach of contract enables the non-breaching party to end the contract and sue for breach of contract damages without waiting for the actual breach to occur. In this case, the breaching party may give such an impression by his actions, or failure to act, such as failing to produce an ordered item, refusing to accept payment, or somehow making it obvious that he cannot or will not fulfill the terms of the contract. Anticipatory Breach of ContractĪnticipatory breach, also known as “ anticipatory repudiation,” occurs when one party to a contract stops acting in accordance with the contract, leading the other party to believe he has no intention of fulfilling his part of the agreement. Such a total breakdown of the material provisions of a contract may be referred to as a “fundamental” or “repudiatory” breach. For example, if the contractor in the above example had used thin plastic not intended for the rigors of maintaining a pond, which could not be expected to last as long as the pond liner, the homeowner might recover the actual cost to correct the material breach, which would include removing the pond and replacing the liner.Ī material breach of contract may relieve the aggrieved party of his own obligations under the contract, and give him the right to sue for damages. Material Breach of Contractįailure of one party to perform his obligations under the contract in such a way that the value of the contract is destroyed, exposes that party to liability for breach of contract damages. In this case, because the color of the liner has no affect on functionality, and the price was basically the same, the difference in value, or “actual damages,” is zero. The homeowner could ask that the contractor be ordered to refund the difference in price between the requested black liner and the installed blue liner. The contractor may have breached the precise terms of the contract, but the homeowner cannot ask that the contractor be ordered to take out the pond and start over with the black liner. The contractor instead installs a blue liner of the same design and thickness, which is totally hidden from view. A homeowner hires a contractor to put a pond in his backyard, showing the contractor the black liner her would like installed under the sand.
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