To establish a prima facie case for breach of contract, a plaintiff must plead and prove: (1) the existence of a contract; (2) a breach of that contract; and (3) damages resulting from the breach. Nat’l Mkt. Share, Inc. v. Sterling Nat’l Bank, 392 F.3d 520, 525 (2d Cir. 2004).

The business world depends on contracts.  Most contracts includes the terms under which a product or service must be delivered and the payment that is due in exchange.  When one party fails to fulfill its obligations under a contract the consequences can be severely damaging.  When someone sues you for breach of contract, the claim may be unfounded or frivolous, or it may be that the other party was actually the one who breached the contract.

If you’ve suffered a financial loss due to a breach of contract, or if you have been accused of a breach, Lanin Law P.C. can represent you to enforce or defend your contract rights.  We have extensive experience litigating and negotiating successful resolutions of contract disputes.

When someone breaches your contract, or claims that you breached their contract, you should immediately speak with an experienced commercial litigation attorney. A commercial litigator will be able to help define what type of damages would be appropriate to seek and what forms of compensation will make the most sense under the circumstances, given your goals and budget.

Damages Available for Breach of Contract:

Specific Performance: The court orders contractual performance to be executed. This remedy is common with transactions involving real estate.

Liquidated Damages: Your contract may spell out what an injured party specifically gets in the event of a breach.

Consequential Damages: Money awarded to compensate the plaintiff for reasonably associated or foreseeable damages, including potentially, lost profits and loss of credit.

Rescission: A remedy in which any money or other valuable consideration given is returned and the parties are no longer obligated to each other under the contract.

Restitution: A return of valuable consideration.

If you have been sued for breach of contract, you may have a defense such as the Statute of Frauds (when a contract must be in a signed writing to be enforceable – oral contract that cannot be performed within one year is unenforceable, Americana Petroleum Corp. v. Northville Indus. Corp., 200 A.D.2d 646, 647 (2d Dept. 1994)); the Statute of Limitations (the deadline to sue is 6 years in New York); or other defenses. You may have counterclaims, where you as the defendant sue the plaintiff for your damages in the same lawsuit. An experienced commercial litigation attorney will review your potential defenses and counterclaims.

>> You can also explore some possible defenses here.