Equitable Contract
People, businesses, or organizations sign contracts all the time. In fact, simply ordering staplers for your business is actually entering into a contract with the company that will supply the staplers. Once you pay for the delivered items you have fulfilled your side of the contract. However, contract breaches involving relationships such as business to businesses, businesses to customers, business to partners or shareholders, and business to employees happen all the time. You may need to talk to a lawyer if the party you entered into a contract with has breached the contract.
What Is A Breach Of Contract?
When a party fails to fulfill their promises according to some or all of the provisions of the contract, then that party has breached the contract. A breach of contract can occur if one party fails to deliver in the agreed upon time frame, fails to meet the terms of the agreement, or fails to do anything at all. A breach of contract can either be minor or material.
A breach of contract is material if the breaching party delivers something that is considerably different from what was agree upon in the contract. For example, if a party delivers a box of footballs instead of golf balls, then that breach is material. A breach is minor if the breaching party delivers the service or item specified in the contract but failed to perform a certain aspect of the contract. For example, if the breaching party delivers the service or item a few days late, then that is a minor breach. However, determining whether a breach is minor or material is not always clear which means that the parties may have to go to court for this determination.
What Are The Remedies In A Breach Of Contract?
Two parties that entered into a contract can opt for rescission if one party fails to meet the terms of the agreement. Rescission in simple terms is the cancellation of an agreement or contract. In other words, if a party breaches the contract then the other party is no longer bound by that contract. However, rescission is an opportunity for the parties involved to agree to another deal. Since the parties signed the contracts because they had mutual interests, they might as well tweak the original contract so that both parties can easily comply with the terms.
Another option is clarifying a contract that was based on a mistake, misunderstanding, or lack of adequate information from either party. This is called the reformation remedy and it is also an opportunity to revise a contract and avoid going to court. However, in certain situations a party may be forced to go to court and ask for specific performance. Asking for specific performance is actually asking the court to make the breaching party do everything that was promised in the agreement. This is a more ideal option in a situation where damages cannot be an adequate remedy. You can also seek an injunction in court against a breaching party. An injunction is a court order that forces a party to refrain from a certain action. You will need a lawyer to help you choose the right option for your specific situation.
