material breach of contractMost people are generally familiar with what a contract is. The notion of a contract is this: two people, or entities, will come together and form an agreement. The agreement will have a set of respective terms to which each party is respectively bound. That is, essentially, a contract. But what happens if a term of the contract is breached by one party? What consequence does the breach have to the other (non-breaching) party? And what does Florida law have to say about all that?

In Florida, to prevail in a cause of action for breach of contract, a party must establish and furnish evidence of the following elements: (1) a valid contract; (2) a material breach of the contract; and (3) damages. Putting aside the other elements of the claim, in this article we are going to focus our attention on the second element, that is, a “material breach” of the contract.

So what is a “material breach”?

In simple terms, a material breach of contract means that one party has violated the terms of the agreement to such an extent that the other party is no longer under the obligation to fulfill his or her end of the agreement. In other words, the non-breaching party, as a result of the other party’s breach, will be discharged from his or her contractual obligations. In Focus Management Group USA, Inc. v. King, 171 F. Supp.3d 1291, the federal district court described a “material breach” in this way:

The general rule is that a material breach of the Agreement allows the non-breaching party to treat the breach as a discharge of his contractual liability.

The herbs in the pill can promote blood and Qi circulation to release the pain levitra price heritageihc.com caused by infections. But, the question they have is how to identify whether viagra sildenafil 100mg check out over here now someone tinkered on your device more than what’s is allowed. Forzest tablet is FDA acknowledged and safe to get rid of premature ejaculation naturally. viagra online for sale The effect of the medicine starts get viagra no prescription in an hour and remains about 6 hours. In Burlington & Rockenbach, P.A. v. Law Offices of E. Clay Parker, 160 So.3d 955, the Fifth District Court of Appeal of Florida described a “material breach” as follows:

To establish a material breach, the party alleged to have breached the contract must have failed to perform a duty that goes to the essence of the contract and is of such significance that it relieves the injured party from further performance of its contractual duties.

In other words, when a party commits a material breach of the contract the other party has no further obligation to perform his required contractual duties. Accordingly, if you find yourself in a situation where the other party is “breaking” the agreement you would have the right to suspend your performance. Further, if a party decides to sue you for breach of contract because you have allegedly failed to fulfill your duties, you could potentially assert his “prior breach” as an affirmative defense if the party had indeed breached your agreement with him in the first instance.

Bear in mind, though, that not every violation of a term of the contract will be material. For instance, the violation of a minor or technical term of the contract will not be material. Generally, whether or not a party has committed a material breach of the contract is usually an issue of fact. Typically, a “material breach” of the contract will be established when the injured party has sustained a substantial injury due to the breach.

If you have any questions about your Florida contract please contact our Firm.

Filed under: Florida Business

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