Hi - a client of ours has breached contract of a service agreement

Hello and thank you so much for coming to contractscounsel.com I just had a few questions for you: 1. Do you have in writing the payment terms for the additional services you perform for the client? 2. Are you running into any issues regarding collecting payment from your client for these services?

Ok thanks! Just a few more questions. 1. How easy do you think it will be for you to find a client to replace the income? I only ask because of the requirement to "mitigate" damages and this may help your case. 2. Do you do business in the same state as this client? Also, does your contract have an agreement about which state disputes are handled in?

Got it! So there are a few things to consider: 1. So the law requires that you "mitigate" your damages, meaning you have to try to take some reasonable efforts to shore up the losses. This is not a black and white thing; it's just something to keep in mind; 2. You have a cause of action for a breach of contract. Under California law, a breach of contract occurs when one party fails to fulfill a legal duty the contract created and causes damages for the plaintiff. (California Civil Jury Instructions Number 303 - https://www.justia.com/trials-litigation/docs/caci/300/303/ ) The measure of damages is the amount that will compensate the aggrieved party for all the detriment caused thereby or likely to result therefrom. (Cal. Civ. Code § 3300 - https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=3300.&lawCode=CIV ) Parties can also seek '"specific performance" of the agreement under section 3388 of the civil code. This applies regardless of whether the agreement was written or done orally. Typically, the aggrieved party is entitled to be returned to the same position they were in before the breach. In other words, they owe you this money and you can sue in a California court.

You have some options you can explore: I suggest sending a template demand letter - https://www.contractscounsel.com/dt/contract-templates/demand-letter-templates . I can draft one for you and review your contract for a total of $*** (I'll send you information on how to do that separately) You can file a lawsuit in your local court. If you’ve already sent a bunch of letters, then the truth is this is the only way to compel them to do anything. Does that help clarify things? I want to make sure I didn’t leave anything out.

Hello! 1. It's best to start with the demand letter. Letters tend to get things done. I'll provide in anther chat the process of a lawsuit. 2. 24K is not going to be small claims. You'll need to sue in superior court, meaning I have to strongly suggest hiring a local lawyer to assist with this. Small claims typically is only up to about $12,000. 3. Suing them would be worth the effort. $24k is a substantial amount in this case.

Filing a lawsuit is relatively simple, but there are some specific steps you must follow.  Generally, you will want to begin with drafting up your complaint. Start with a brief introduction and then a new heading with a new paragraph where you lay out the facts.  Once you lay out the facts, create a new heading that provides your legal analysis. For example,  you could say that a breach of contract occurs when someone fails to fulfill their obligation in an agreement.  It doesn't have to be very long, but something that explains what your legal authority is to bring the case.  Afterward, you will want to have your “Prayer for Relief” as a separate heading and then you put in what you want (e.g. amount of money you want).  Make three copies of this. The court may have specific cover sheets and require a filing fee, so check on that as well, so be sure to check on that.

When you’re done, file the documents. You need to have a third party send a copy of the filed document to the defendant. Finally, there’s the discovery process where you can ask the other party for documents and even take statements from witnesses (these are called depositions). If you can’t reach agreement, then you go to trial. Please keep in mind that if you have a company (e.g. an LLC) then you must hire an attorney to represent the company.