How do minor and material breaches of contract differ?

There are two primary types of breaches of contracts: minor and material ones. Parties that enter into contractual agreements with one another may be required to meet certain obligations or be subject to certain penalties depending on the type of breach that they’re alleged to have had a hand in.

A material breach is the more serious of the two types. It occurs when a party fails to carry out its obligations as outlined in their contract. If the person that they’re contracted to provide services to receives something markedly different from what they were supposed to have, then a breach of contract is deemed to have occurred.

If the party that is slated to offer a service fails to do so, therefore, materially breaching their contract, then the nonbreaching one is no longer required to adhere to their obligations as outlined in the agreement. It’s at that point that they’re entitled to demand all appropriate remedies from the other party for having breached the contract.

A breach is considered to be a minor one if the party who agreed to perform some type of service or provide an item ultimately did just that. If time was of the essence and a delay in receiving it caused some kind of financial or reputational harm, then the party offering the product or service may be ordered to pay for any damages that the delay caused. The recipient must still pay for the product or service ultimately received though.

There are a variety of factors that a judge or jury will be asked to consider when determining whether a minor or material breach has occurred. An attorney can review your contract and the specifics surrounding your case and let you know how you should proceed in your legal matter here in Melbourne or elsewhere in Florida.