By Benita Ayo
The complexity of day-to-day business transactions has made the requirement of having a contract drafted a necessity and not merely a need. More often than not, disputes as to the exact terms of a business relationship which is contractual in nature may arise, and it is the terms so stated in the contract document that a Court of Law will always look at in settling the dispute.
When the need for a Contract arises
The need for a contract arises where two or more persons agree to transact any form of business together. It caters for situations that may give rise to conflict in the course of the business relationship.
What are the remedies for breach of Contract?
First off, a remedy is defined as a reparation for a wrong done to an innocent party. The law has always been and will always be in favour of an innocent party to a contract whose rights were infringed or abused.
Thus, the remedies for a breach of contract include the following;
- Damages
- Specific Performance and
- Injunction
Damages
In law, damages refer to the legal remedy which a party prays the court to award in order to restitute the injury suffered by the party. It constitutes the monetary compensation given to or awarded to the injured party.
An award for damages is given where the court finds that a party breached a duty under the express terms of the contract.
Specific Performance
This is an equitable remedy in contract law where a court compels a party in breach of contract to perform a specific act in order to complete the performance of the contract.
Elements of Specific Performance
Specific Performance becomes available where the following exists;
- A valid and binding contract
- Mutual obligation and remedy
- Freedom from fraud and overreaching
- Express Terms
- Lack of remedy at law
In a nutshell, specific performance becomes necessary where it can be established that monetary compensation is not enough to atone or compensate for the injury suffered by the innocent party.
Injunction
This refers to an Order of Court directing a party to perform an act to remedy of a breach of duty in a contract. It may also be an Order refraining a party from doing an act which injures an innocent party to a contract.
Conditions for the grant of an Order of Injunction
Before the court can be moved to grant an Order of Injunction, the following conditions must exist;
- Existence of a legal right
- Substantial issue to be tried
- Balance of convenience (which must tilt in favour of the party seeking the Injunction)
- Irreparable damage done to the party praying the court for the Order of Injunction and
- Undertaking as to damages
Summation
In sum, it should be understood that contracts come with obligations and duties which are highly sacred. While the courts will not alter or vary the terms of a valid and subsisting contract, they will however not hesitate to enforce the terms of the contract where it is established that a party has breached the terms.
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Benita Ayo is a Seasoned Corporate Commercial Counsel with over 9 years post-call experience. She has handled myriads of briefs in Corporate/Commercial, Employment Law as well as Property Transactional Practice.
