Contract Law and the Willfulness Diversion
Files
Description
Expectation damages for breach of contract are generally awarded on a strict liability basis. That is, in the typical case, the reason for the promisor's breach is irrelevant. It is often stated that an exception to this general rule occurs in the event of “willful” breach, which is said to justify special damages. The supposed exception has led to a conundrum because every instance of anticipatory repudiation is in some sense willful as is every refusal to cure a deviation from promised performance, yet in only a subset of these cases is the “willful” label attached as a reason for a high damages award. Why then are some, but not all, intentional breaches singled out for condemnation?
Source Publication
Fault in American Contract Law
Source Editors/Authors
Omri Ben-Shahar, Ariel Porat
Publication Date
2010
Recommended Citation
Adler, Barry E., "Contract Law and the Willfulness Diversion" (2010). Faculty Chapters. 13.
https://gretchen.law.nyu.edu/fac-chapt/13
