Types of Damages To Claim in a Breach of Contract
A contract is a written agreement between two or more parties. All parties involved are obliged to make the payment or perform the specified duties as stated in the contract. In situations where one party neglects to maintain their part of the deal, there are various damages to claim for contract breach as per your situation. There are numerous types of damages to claim, which a business litigation lawyer can help you with.
Types of Contract Breach Damages
There are various types of damages for contract breach that you can file in case of a breach. This would help you in getting compensation for the losses you faced due to the neglect of the other party. Here are the four most common types of damages to claim for a contract breach:
Consequential Damages
Consequential damages are also known as special damages. These are the damages in which there is clear proof of the other party failing to meet the contract obligations. These damages have not directly resulted from the act but are the consequence of that act. In order to obtain these damages, it is important that you prove the foreseeable outcome of that breach. For instance for a contract breach, these damages would include all the losses that occurred due to particular or general needs and requirements that the other party was well aware of at the time of signing the contract but failed to fulfill.
Consequential damages might include numerous things, including profit-loss because of interruption of usual business practices, and loss of clients or customers because of cancellations or delays. Since these things can be assigned to a range of different consequences, consequential damages are therefore far more significant in terms of amounts awarded.
Actual Damages
Actual damages are also known as compensatory damages, which cover the loss experienced by the non-breaching party due to the breach of contract. The actual damages are divided into two categories:
- Special Damages
- General Damages
Special damages refer to the monetary damages of the financial losses incurred by the non-breaching party. These losses might include cost of hospital and medical treatment, physical therapy, rehabilitation expanses, nursing home care, transportation cost, lost wages or income, property repair or replacement and more. However, the plaintiff should prove the suffered losses are equal to the monetary value.
On the other hand, general damages refer to the non-tangible and non-economic suffering of the plaintiff as a result of the defendant’s breach of contract. These might include loss of life enjoyment, loss of mental or physical capacity, disfigurement, defamation, loss of consortium, emotional distress, and pain and suffering.
Anticipatory Damages
Anticipatory damages can be claimed when one party declares that they don’t intend to perform their duties, obligations, or make the payment as per the contact terms. This breach of contract is also called as anticipatory repudiation. This means that the contract is breached before even the commencement of the contract.
Simply put, the defendant doesn’t intend to oblige to the contract terms. In case the defendant is unable to perform their obligations or is not willing to before the deadline of the contract, then you can file for damage claim and compensation. There are two kinds of anticipatory repudiation:
- Implied repudiation
- Express repudiation
In case of implied repudiation, one party does not refuse clearly to not oblige or perform the duties but instead implies from their actions or words that they are not going to meet the requirements of the contract before the deadline of the contract. In case of express repudiation, one party clearly expresses the breach of contract. This means they have plainly refused to meet the requirements of the contract before its deadline.
Economic Damages
Damages are the compensation rewarded to the plaintiff for injury or loss due to the defendant’s negligence or breach of contract. In order to be rewarded monetary compensation; the plaintiff must prove that the defendant’s breach of duty resulted in foreseeable losses. In order to be recognized by law, those damages must include physical injury, mental injury, or damage to property.
These might include future and past medical expenses, loss of the ability to earn, out-of-pocket costs, property damages, rehabilitation costs, physical therapy cost, future or past loss of wages. These damages evaluate the extent of harm a party had to endure in terms of financial terms as a negligence of the other party.
The main aim of the economic damages is restoring the plaintiff to the position they were before the defendant’s negligence caused harm. Therefore, these damages are typically considered as remedial instead of punitive or preventive. However, punitive damages might be rewarded for certain kinds of wrongful conducts. Before the plaintive is able to recover those damages, the damages they experienced must be recognized as warranting redress by the law.
Once a breach of contract occurs, it is essential for the plaintiff to immediately consult a business litigation lawyer. The experienced lawyer will start preparing a case to ensure you recover the damages you deserve. Moreover, the lawyer will also prepare for any claims that the defendant’s lawyer will try to make against your claims in order to try and reduce the compensation amount. Therefore, it is important to have a skilled car accident lawyer working on your behalf. If you have experienced a contract breach, it is important to get in touch with Shiner Legal Group Business & Commercial Lawyers and get a free evaluation of your case. Our experienced business litigation lawyer will immediately start preparing for the trial and make sure they negotiate the best settlement for you.