REMEDIES FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT

Liquidated damages and penalties Specific performance and injunctions Damages under Lord Cairns'Act Actions for debt

REMEDIES FOR BREACH DAMAGES MEASURE OF DAMAGES THE COMPENSATION PRINCIPLE

Commonwealth v Amann Aviation The mere difficulty of estimating damages does not relieve a court of the responsibility of placing a value on what has been lost Plaintiff has onus of proof in showing he or she suffered some loss

EXPECTATION DAMAGES
Belgrove v Eldrige Instable house required demolishing, entitled to cost of cure instead of diminution in value. Here cost of value > diminution in value Tabcorp Holdings v Bowen Investments Consider personal preferences of plaintiff to consider whether final product is defective Ruxley Electronics and Construction v Forsyth Swimming pool Rejected claim for cost of cure. Expenditure required to rectify defect out of all proportion to benefit which would be obtained by respondent. Damages based on diminution of value.

RELIANCE DAMAGES
McRae v Commonwealth Disposals Commission Reliance damages awarded incurred in salvaging non-existent tanker (not loss making contract)

Commonwealth v Amann Aviation Plaintiff has onus of proof in showing he or she suffered some loss A plaintiff who did not expect to make a profit but was not going to make a loss will be able to recover wasted expenditure. Majority held that reliance damages could be recovered.

DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF A CHANCE

Howe v Teefy Defendant agreed to lease a racehorse to plaintiff, who was a trainer for three years. After three months, defendant removed horse from plaintiff without justification. Plaintiff bought action for loss of chance: loss of opportunity to win prizes and bets. Jury awarded plaintiff $250 in damages, defendant appealed. Held that the chance cannot be too remote: has to have been in contemplation of both parties. The test is whether the plaintiff was possessed of something which had a monetary value, and of which he was deprived by the defendants breach of contract. In this case it is clear that he was deprived of something of value. Calculate damages not by how much profit he would probably make from the horse, but his chance of making that profit by having the horse. So jurys award cannot be interfered with. Chaplin v Hicks Chance has to be quantifiable to be awarded damages for loss of a chance

LIMITATIONS ON THE AWARD OF DAMAGES CAUSATION

Losses arising according to the usual course of things Losses as may reasonably have been supposed to have been in the contemplation of the parties

Alexander v Cambridge Credit Corp Auditor, $10 mil v $155 mil loss No damages: plaintiff must show causal connection between defendants breach and the loss for which the plaintiff is seeking compensation

REMOTENESS OF DAMAGE
Hadley v Baxendale Late boiler, lucrative contract Damages should only be awarded for breaches of contract which would have been reasonably contemplated by the parties Victoria Laundry v Newman Industries Plaintiff can only claim damages for losses that may reasonably have been supposed to have been in the contemplation of the parties. Alexander v Cambridge Credit Corp Also can only claim damages for losses arising according to the usual course of things

MITIGATION OF DAMAGE Reasonable steps in mitigation and the impecunious plaintiff

Burns v MAN Automotive Bad engine The fact that a plaintiff cannot afford to take steps to reduce the loss caused by a breach of contract will not protect him or her from a reduction of damages

Attempts at mitigation which increase loss

Simonius Vischer & Co v Holt Thompson Unauthorised futures trading in Sydney office Where a plaintiff takes reasonable steps to mitigate his or her damage but actually increases the losses suffered, the plaintiff can recover damages to compensate for those additional losses

LIMITATIONS RELATING TO SPECIFIC TYPES OF CLAIM Disappointment, distress, loss of reputation

Baltic Shipping Co v Dillon May be awarded emotional compensation where provision of enjoyment is aim of contract General principle: no damages for non-pecuniary loss

Loss of bargain damages and termination under a term

Shevill v Builders Licensing Board Can only claim loss of bargain damages if the right to terminate was conferred by common law, affirmed in Progression Mailing House v Tabali Anti-Shevill clauses: provide that specific terms are fundamental and that the landlord retains the right to damages on termination by reason of a breach of those essential terms. (because in Shevill, loss of bargain damages could not be claimed because right to termination arose from the contract and not from the common law)