Potential Causes of Action for Breach of Contract and Specific Performance

Candie Cardigan as a representative for CARDWARE has decided to auction her strapless giraffe print dress made of silk, satin with velvet markings. This particular dress was used in a movie filmed in S. Africa. The dress had been show cased among other famous dresses in the Silkadonia Actors Guild Museum. Cassie Cardigan was chosen to act as the auctioneer for World Wide Auction House. The bidding for the dress began at $5,000. Pearl has been looking forward to participating in the auction for this dress for over three months. Pearl raised her auction paddle and bid the initial $5,000. Jade also wanted the giraffe print dress and upped the ante to $5,500. The two battled the bidding to where it appeared that Pearl got the dress for $8,500.00, as Cassie smiled and nodded at Pearl.

Candie and Jade had been friends for years, as they had modeled together growing up as children. Candie quietly told Cassie to sell the dress to Jade. When Pearl presented $8,500 to Cassie, Cassie refused to take her money claiming that the dress was to go to Jade. Cassie further explained that Jade had allegedly had raised her paddle after Pearl’s final bid and showed five fingers meaning that she was bidding $500.00 more over the $8,500.00 bid made by Pearl. In reality, no such action by Jade had taken place.

Pearl now wants to sue for breach of contract. She has come to your office asking for your help. She wants you to request that Candie turn the dress over to her for the $8,500 that she bid. Your supervising attorney Les Agne indicates that you should investigate a cause of action for breach of contract, as well as a cause of action based on specific performance. Be aware of whom the true Plaintiff may be in this potential case and who causes of action may be brought against. Also, Les has scribbled the following notes to help you with organizing your thoughts regarding Specific Performance.

Dear Paralegal:

After you establish a contract exists as a result of the auctioning of the giraffe print dress, you may want to consider the following with regard to specific performance:

-You must have a contract in place

-The remedy at law must not be adequate (hence damages alone will not provide relief to the party who is seeking specific performance.

-The remedy must be enforceable

-If one party can bring the action for specific performance, so can the other if the positions were reversed.

-If there were any conditions to the contract, all were.

-Be sure to discuss defenses with regard to the contract. In other words, what will Candie or the Auction House say in response to there being a contract?

Assignment Instructions:

Please write me a memorandum in the following format:

Date:
To: Les Agne, Attorney at law
From: [Your Name]
Re: Potential Causes of Action for Breach of Contract and Specific Performance

Organize your memorandum with an introduction, body, and conclusion.

Note: Your memorandum length of 2–3 pages is separate from the cover sheet and reference page.

Keep all font color consistent throughout. If a blue hyperlink appears, remove it by hovering over it and right click. A vertical dropdown menu will appear. Click on Remove Hyperlink.

Avoid the use of first person.

ANSWER

Potential Causes of Action for Breach of Contract and Specific Performance

Introduction

The contract between the three is a result of the auctioning of the giraffe print dress. The auctioning bidding that occurred between the parties is considered a legally binding agreement. Ideally, once the bid has been accepted, the seller has no authority to agree on an upper bid or withdraw the purchaser’s bid. Withdrawing the offer leads to a breach of contract, which occurred during the auctioning. A breach of contract occurs when there is a failure of a contractual agreement by the party to perform per the contract terms. This allows the other party to take legal action. The court can only grant particular performance if the context of the contract is unique where the aggrieved party can avail a remedy.

Firstly to determine whether there was a contract between the parties involved in the auctioning, it is important to determine whether the auction is with or without reserve. An auction that has reserve means that the auctioneer can halt the offers on the items at any moment before the close of the sale through go-ahead granted by the vendor. An auction without reserve means that the auctioneer has to trade the item to the maximum bidder, which means no reserve price.

Based on the scenario, there is a breach in the agreement. Ideally, a breach of contract is a failure short of legal justification to conduct any agreement used in developing the contract. Ideally, when either party fails to keep their promise or fulfill their obligations per the contract terms, that becomes a breach of contract due to the cause of action (Rowan, 2012). There is a breach of contract since all the elements of the valid contact are evident in this scenario. Therefore, the innocent party may claim damages from the party that has breached the contract (Rowan, 2012). Nominal damages will be awarded if the party has suffered no loss due to the breach of contract or substantial damages such as monetary compensation if the party has suffered loss as a result of the breach of contract.

The specific performance will be an alternative justifiable remedy to an intention of action for contract breach (Arbel, 2015). For instance, the aggrieved party in this scenario may approach the court to enforce a particular section of the contract. To have the breach of remedy, a civil lawsuit is filed for the breach. A suitable compensation will vary depending on the circumstance and evidence that there was a failure by the other party according to the agreement on the contractual conditions and fairness concerns.

In the auctioning of the giraffe print dress, Candie is the seller, Caissie is the auctioneer, Jade and Pearl are the bidders, which means the auctioneer failed to perform according to the contractual terms in the bidding process. Since the party in breach has failed to sell the dress to Pearl despite being the highest bidder, they can use it for specific performance. This means that the party in breach, Candie, will have to sell the dress to Pearl according to the contract terms. In such a case, the court may insist that the party carried out their obligations in the agreement. This decree of specific performance is conducted rather than damages.

Conclusion

In summation, the scenario shows possible grounds of action for breach of contract and specific performance. The aggrieved party may request a specific performance if the contract has been breached. The measure of damages in the breach of contract is the sum that will compensate the aggrieved party and place them in a position that they would have occupied if the contract had been performed. The specific performance asserts that parties in the contract are to carry out the exact terms as promised during the contract.

References

Arbel, Y. A. (2015). Contract remedies in action: Specific performance. W. Va. L. Rev., 118, 369.

Rowan, S. (2012). Remedies for Breach of Contract: A Comparative Analysis of the Protection of performance. Oxford University Press on Demand.