Villalobos and Associates:Breach of Contract

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Breach of Contract

Entering into a contract may sound easy when you know what you want but making sure you get what you want is something else. Knowing your rights and obligations afforded by a contract is extremely important since all parties to the contract will be looking to maximize gain and minimize their liabilities.

Whenever entering into a contract it is extremely important to have an experienced attorney on your side to review the document and negotiate with the other party to make sure you get what you want. Valid contracts have the force of law and all parties are bound to the agreements contained within them. Breaching the agreement can have serious consequences such as liens on property, large monetary judgments, and wage garnishment.

Villalobos & Associates has extensive experience reviewing and litigating simple business contracts as well as complex contracts involving bonds, securities, and multiple parties. Some cases are best resolved by the parties settling on an agreement before going to trial while others require aggressive litigation. In either case, Villalobos & Associates will always fight for your rights and for your exclusive benefit.

Contract Basics

Before a party can breach a contract, there first must be a contract between the parties. A contract can be either written or oral. A contract is basically an agreement between parties where each party promises to do something and receives something in return. This can be as simple as paying someone to shovel snow in front of your house or as complex as a multi-parcel real estate purchase. A breach of contract often happens when one or more of the parties fails or refuses to do what they promised to do. One of the biggest questions in a breach of contract case involves the contract -the agreement- itself and what the parties expected.

Different Laws for Different Contracts

In Illinois, different laws apply to different types of contracts. For example, contracts involving the sale of goods are governed by the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) and there are many codified rules regarding these contracts. Many of these rules are very specific and different from the rules and laws that govern contracts for services.

There are also different rules that apply to oral and written contracts. While many oral contracts are valid and binding, in general, the statute of frauds requires that contracts involving the sale of real property or contracts that cannot be performed within a year must be in writing. There are, however,exceptions so it is very important to understand the risks and possibilities before entering into an agreement. In addition, the statute of limitations for oral contracts is 5 years while the statute of limitations for written contracts is 10 years.

Damages

In breach of contract cases, the question of damages is extremely important and can be complex. In many cases, a prevailing party will be entitled to the benefit that it expected to receive under the contract. For example, if a business owner hired someone to plow snow in the parking lot of his business and the snow never gets plowed, the business owner may recover the money that he paid or an amount that is enough to hire someone else to plow the snow. But what if customers could not park in the lot and the business lost sales as a result of the snow not being plowed? In some cases, a party may recover damages that occured as a result of the breach of contract. Once again, it is important to look to the understanding between the parties.

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