anticipatory breach of contract

anticipatory breach of contract
n.
A breach of contract that occurs when one party announces before the time scheduled for performance that he or she will not perform according to the contract.

The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. . 2008.


anticipatory breach of contract
where a party to a contract intimates, or it becomes clear, that he is not going to perform on the due date, then there is said to be anticipatory breach: Hochster v . de la Tour (1853) 2 E&B 678. The difficulty is that the innocent party could, in many cases, in the time available mitigate his loss by finding another to perform. The unfortunate thing about that would be that the contract-breaker would escape liability. It is accepted that the innocent party may decline to accept the repudiation and instead sue on the due date, when, of course, the losses may be higher than at the anticipatory date: Tai Hing Cotton Mill v. Kamsing Knitting Factory [1979] AC 91. The most dangerous thing about the doctrine for a contract-breaker is the rule that a party may completely ignore the breach and himself perform on the due date, assuming he does not require the contract-breaker's assistance in so doing, and then sue for the obligations under the contract. The benefit of this course is that the claim is one for a due debt, not for damages, and there is therefore no need to mitigate loss: White & Carter (Councils) v. McGregor, 1962 SC (HL)
1. See also cancellation.

Collins dictionary of law. . 2001.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • anticipatory breach of contract — The assertion by a party to a contract that he or she will not perform a future obligation as required by the contract. Such occurs when a party to an executory contract manifests a definite and unequivocal intent prior to time fixed in contract… …   Black's law dictionary

  • anticipatory breach of contract — The assertion by a party to a contract that he or she will not perform a future obligation as required by the contract. Such occurs when a party to an executory contract manifests a definite and unequivocal intent prior to time fixed in contract… …   Black's law dictionary

  • breach of contract — breach of contract: breach (1b) Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. breach of contract …   Law dictionary

  • anticipatory breach — see breach 1b Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. anticipatory breach …   Law dictionary

  • anticipatory breach — ➔ breach1 * * * anticipatory breach UK US noun [C] ► LAW the act of breaking a contract before it comes into effect, by refusing to do what the contract says or by making yourself unable to do what it says: »He is waiting to see if the… …   Financial and business terms

  • Breach of contract — Contract law Part …   Wikipedia

  • Anticipatory Breach — In contract law, an action that shows a party s intention to fail to perform or fulfill its contractual obligations to another party. An anticipatory breach negates the counterparty s responsibility to perform its requirements under the contract …   Investment dictionary

  • breach of contract — A failure by a party to a contract to perform obligations under that contract or an indication of an intention not to do so. An indication that a contract will be breached in the future is called repudiation or an anticipatory breach; it may be… …   Accounting dictionary

  • breach of contract — A failure by a party to a contract to perform the obligations in that contract or an indication of an intention not to do so. An indication that a contract will be breached in the future is called repudiation or an anticipatory breach; it may be… …   Big dictionary of business and management

  • breach of contract — noun a breach of a legal duty; failure to do something that is required in a contract • Hypernyms: ↑breach • Hyponyms: ↑anticipatory breach, ↑constructive breach, ↑breach of the covenant of warranty, ↑breach of promise, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”