Restitution Damages Rst. 2d, 371: “If a sum of money is awarded to protect a party’s restitution interest, it may as justice requires be measured by either (a) the reasonable value to the other party of what he received in terms of what it would have cost him to obtain it from a person in […]
Reliance Damages Rst. 2d, Sec 349 (Prof points out 349): “As an alternative to the measure of damages stated in 347 [expectation damages] the injured party has a right to damages based on his reliance interest, including expenditures made in preparation for performance or in performance, less any loss that the party in breach can […]
Mitigation Definition Mitigation of Damages is a requirement that one injured by reason of another’s breach of an agreement exercise reasonable diligence and ordinary care to avoid aggravating the injury or increasing the damages. When Applicable In general, the party that did not breach has the duty to mitigate in lessening the damages incurred by […]
Expectation Damages General rule: put the plaintiff in the same position as if the contract had been performed You should always ask first, “How much would performance of the contract increase (or decrease) the plaintiff’s wealth?” If the answer to that question is not consistent with the formula, you probably have the wrong formula. Note: […]
Remedies Introduction Expectation Damages: Plaintiffs recover enough money to fulfill their economic expectations for the contract. Contract literature and UCC have formulas to measure expectation damages. For example, Prof. Farnsworth uses general measure = loss in value + other loss – cost avoided – loss avoided. Loss in value = difference in value b/w what […]
Unconscionability UCC 2-302: Llewellyn recognized that the increased use of form contracts necessitated expanding the concept of unconscionability: “The boiler plate is assented to en bloc, ‘unsight, unseen,’ on the implicit assumption and to the full extent that 1) it does not alter or impair the fair meaning of the dickered terms when read alone, […]
Public Policy and Illegality Clouse v. Myers Facts: Π and Δ entered an agreement to jointly run a tavern. Π paid money to Δ as an investment in the venture, with more to pay at a later date. However, it was not legal for Π to operate a tavern in the manner propsed, and the […]
Legal Regulation of Contracts Misrepresentation and Mistake of Fact Generally A mistake is a belief that is not in accord with the facts. Restatement 2d §151. Mutual Mistake – Where a mistake of both parties at the time a contract was made as to a basic assumption on which the contract was made has a […]
Modifications Rst. 2d, Sec. 73: “Performance of a legal duty owed to a promisor which is neither doubtful nor the subject of honest dispute is not consideration” Basically, a pre-existing duty cannot serve as consideration This generalized principle in many instances turns out to be very doubtful, and in any case, it is also not […]
Implied Terms and the Implied Covenant of Good Faith Definitions Good Faith is a total absence of any intention to seek an unfair advantage or to defraud another party; an honest and sincere intention to fulfill one’s obligations In the case of a merchant, good faith refers to honesty in fact and the observance of […]
