In many cases, after a breach of contract by one party, the non-breaching party may get “relief,” or a “remedy” to the situation. This is a way of solving the issue between the feuding parties.
There are three common ways to remedy a breach of contract. According to FindLaw, these are damages, specific performance and cancellation and restitution.
Damages
This is the most common remedy for breach of contract. Essentially, “damages” means that the breaching party provides some form of compensation (usually monetary) to the non-breaching party.
There are many different kinds of damages. Compensatory damages will put the non-breaching party in a similar position to where they were prior to the breach. Punitive damages aim to penalize the breaching party by making them pay above and beyond what would compensate the non-breaching party. Nominal damages provide a small amount of money to the non-breaching party. This appears in cases where the non-breaching party did not lose money on account of the breaching party.
Specific performance and cancellation and restitution
Specific performance requires the breaching party to engage in the performance the original contract stipulated they would do, under a court order. This comes into play when monetary remedies would not put the non-breaching party into the position they were in before the breach. Cancellation is where the non-breaching party cancels the contract. Restitution is when the non-breaching party sues for damages.
There are many different ways to remedy a breach of contract, and which one is best for your situation depends on several mitigating factors. However, there are several options available to you if another party has breached your contract.
