Some people may believe that breaching a contract isn’t a big deal, but the truth is that it can be. If you are relying on a party to fulfill their obligations and they fail to do so, it can mean that you’re unable to fulfill your own duties to clients or consumers.
When another party breaches a contract, you have a few options. You can speak with the other party to see what happened and find out if you can come to an agreement on how to resolve the situation. You can also go through arbitration (if there is an arbitration clause in your contract) and have an arbitrator enforce the contract. You can also seek to recover compensation for any financial harm you suffered due to the other party’s breach.
Essentially, the three remedies for a contract breach include:
- Damages
- Cancellation and restitution
- Specific performance
You can ask the other party to pay damages. You can also ask them to cancel the contract and pay back any financial losses you suffer as a result. Finally, you can ask to have a specific action taken, like fulfilling the obligations of the contract.
In most cases, it’s not necessary to go to trial over a breach of contract. Most parties are willing to settle and negotiate, and arbitration is common. However, if you and the other party cannot agree and you are suffering as a result of the breach, you should reach out to your attorney and discuss the possibility of having a judge enforce the contract or the remedy you want to use.
