What is a material breach of contract?

Hello!
My name is Dolan and thank you so much for contacting me!
I just had a few quick questions for you:
When you said they have taken the money, what do you mean? Do you know what they took it for?

I'm so sorry about that! Has he done this previously?

Understood! So you're just wondering what it is you can do here, correct? What state is this in?

Thanks! I think we responded at the same time. My apologies.

Ok! Did you need to tell me anything else? If not, I can start with answering your question.

Ok! I've been working on an answer while we've been chatting, so it'll just be a moment.

I'm so sorry about this situation! I want to address your situation with a detailed response, so if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask because this law stuff can get complicated. A breach of contract simply means that one party was obligated to perform and they have either not performed or have said that they will not perform. (Restatement (Second) of Contracts.) A MATERIAL BREACH is when a party breaks a core promise in a manner that substantially harms the other party (you). In your case, if this person was taking out this much money, without your consent or acknowledgement, and because this isn't a de minimis (minor) amount of money, this would result in a material breach. 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. You have some options you can explore:
You may want to consider writing a formal demand letter first. Then, if they do not respond, I recommend hiring a lawyer to sue! Also, you could sue for a breach of their fiduciary (financial) duties to you.

Correct! They have to pay the money back. I am hesitant to believe that this is a criminal matter because if they had some mistaken belief that they were entitled to this money, it makes it less likely a local prosecutor would take this case.

Besides, criminal prosecutions are beyond what you can do. Only the state can pursue them for criminal matters.

In your case, to maintain control, and to help get things settled, you should pursue this civilly. Does that help clarify things? I want to make sure I didn’t leave anything out.

Understood! You certainly could. The local police or local district attorney can investigate to determine if this was a form of fraud or embezzlement. They have to conduct their own investigation. You can pursue civil action at the same time, too.

Sure thing! You have two options - you can purchase a template to help. It's only $24.99 and you can send it yourself - https://www.contractscounsel.com/t/document-form-checkout/119 . This helps keep costs down.

I could send a demand letter on your behalf for $*** . This would include drafting and sending it on your behalf. I would create a job through this site to keep things easy for you. It's a flat fee for that!

Sure thing! I'll set up a job and the site will email you with an option to accept it. From there, it'll create a portal where we can chat and share documents together! You also get a 10% discount on the job and you'll see all the terms before ever having to do anything.

Sure thing! You can upload documentation such as any partnership agreements and if you have anything such as a screenshot of the missing money from the account, the date, and amount, that will help!