Overview of Breach of Contract
When a party does not comport with what is set out in the contract, a breach has occurred. At times the breach of a contract happens by a party failing to perform their obligations under the contract or doing what they are supposed to be doing, but not to the standards that are required in the contract. Breaches can be major or minor and can be done intentionally or unintentionally through negligence. That being said, damage must still occur in order for there to be a viable breach of contract case . There can be the possibility of legal action in situations of an innocent breach, where one party did not have knowledge the other person did not intend to abide by the contract. A major breach allows the other party to cancel the contract and pursue damages against the offending party. A minor breach, however, only allows the non-breaching party to hold the breaching party liable for assigned damages.
When You Need a Lawyer for a Breach of Contract Case
Attorneys are more likely to have experience in the area of law your case poses than pro se litigants. Even an attorney who practices in a different area of law may have experience taking on cases he or she is assisting you with. However, for potential clients, one of the most obvious benefits to hiring a lawyer over trying to handle a case on his or her own is that you will have someone in your corner that knows all of the tricks of the trade and how to help your case most effectively.
There are many reasons why a breach of contract lawyer may be able to help you with a breach of contract case. First off, he or she may be able to tell you right off the bat whether or not you have a valid claim, or a legal defense, or if there are other ways you can try to resolve the matter. In many instances, if your matter is simple enough to navigate on your own, he or she may even help you save legal fees by providing some helpful advice.
In other matters, though, a lawyer may be able to save you money simply by helping you avoid mistakes. In order to cite one hypothetical, if you attempt to sue your neighbor for breaking your fence during a storm by removing the tree that broke it without first having the tree removed yourself so to prove the damage it caused, you will likely lose. However, if you had a qualified lawyer at this earlier stage, they could have told you that the law requires you to mitigate (or minimize) the damage, and you would have been able to rein in your claim to something that is recoverable.
Even if you haven’t made a mistake (yet), a breach of contract attorney can be useful to have for the discovery process usually involved in these matters. While you or your lawyer may be held to certain discovery requests if they are requested of you, as you are a lawyer, a lawyer is otherwise required to follow the letter of the law, and must still obey it, but you cannot hold it against him or her in any capacity. This is to say that even if a lawyer does not decide to work with you throughout the whole matter when you come to them at the beginning and they refer you out, they will not be as harsh on you if you make a mistake as someone else holding himself or herself to the same standard.
Of course, a qualified breach of contract attorney will also be able to tell you if there are any problems with your contract that you need to be wary of, and be able to deal with your adversary, keeping you free of business-like distractions. If all other considerations are equal, one of the final reasons to hire contract lawyers is that they are generally more costly on their own, but they offer you a free consultation to help you determine the right way to proceed with your case, and they can help you figure out if you actually need a lawyer at all.
Advantages of a Free Legal Consultation
When you have a free consultation with a Houston breach of contract lawyer you can get a good sense of your legal position and potential next steps without spending any money. This is more important than ever for businesses, as this gives the opportunity to get an independent analysis of facts and situations that impact their business in no uncertain terms. In many cases, people in business have other people looking out for their interests. In other words, lawyers are not business people (a good thing!) and we are not career employees of this or that company. Most likely your friend in accounting is not going to tell you how weak a legal position you have, and you may not want to ask. You are now getting an objective and critical view point on legal issues impacting your business. This could include review of and input on the following:
How a Free Legal Consultation Works
In a free consultation, you will likely be given the opportunity to describe the basic facts and legal issues involved with your potential case. It is helpful if you have prepared in advance a timeline of facts relating to your potential case.
Typically, you will be asked to provide a brief description of the events giving rise to your breach of contract action, whether a written agreement exists between you and the party who allegedly breached that agreement , whether that agreement is governed by state or federal law, and whether the agreement or related documents contain mandatory arbitration clauses or other forum selection clauses.
You may receive questions such as whether the contract was signed, and when, the names of any parties involved, whether any modifications were made to the written contract, and when. The attorney may ask whether the contract was breached and what remedies you seek should you be successful.
Prepping for a Free Legal Consultation
Preparing for your consultation with a breach of contract attorney is essential to maximizing the useful information you obtain. Most attorneys have a pretty good idea of the general flow of a case, so you won’t have to spend time rehashing a general overview of the facts. Instead, by gathering documents and figuring out the best way to explain the facts, you will be in the best position to evaluate a particular lawyer’s suitability to represent you. To prepare for a consultation, I encourage you to:
- Review the consultation. A lot of attorneys send an email with general information about the firm and instructions for the consultation. If you receive such an email, refer to it before the consultation to make sure you gather all the materials and understand the points you want to cover in the consultation. If you don’t receive such an email, I would not assume this means the attorney is not worth interviewing. Each firm has a different style. In fact, I do not use the same method for scheduling and conducting consultations. Take the initiative to ensure a productive meeting.
- Gather information to help prove your case. Have a copy of the contract, any emails or correspondence with the signer, and any other communications you had with the signer regarding the business deal. If you have to interact with the signer primarily orally and you do not have a written record, write down the substance of those communications. Basically, do everything you can to document the signer’s action or inaction in the deal. Sometimes actions speak louder than words. Just take notes about what happened.
- Review the contract and outline the areas where the signer has failed to live up to his or her obligations to show the attorney exactly what you are asking him or her to do for you. An attorney cannot help you if there is not a breach of contract, misunderstanding, or other dispute. This might seem like an obvious step. However, if an attorney sees that there is a serious issue, he or she might be willing to forgo charges or work out a payment plan. On the other hand, a lawyer will not forego his or her fee for a case that will ultimately go nowhere.
How to Select the Best Lawyer for Your Case
When it comes to your choosing a breach of contract lawyer, there are a number of factors you need to consider in order to ensure that your case is being proven by someone with experience in this legal niche. Otherwise, you may end up with a bigger mess on your hands than the one you started out with.
The following are some points to take under consideration when you are looking for an attorney to take on your legal case regarding a breach of contract.
First, you should check the "experience" level of the lawyers you are considering. Experience is typically measured by the number of years a lawyer has been practicing law as well as the rate of success. Take a look at each lawyer or law firm’s website to get a clear idea of the number of years they have been providing legal services and what their success rate has been in the past. You may also want to obtain and read on or two customer reviews of the lawyer or law firm before making your decision .
Secondly, you need to pay attention to whether or not the lawyer practices solely in breach of contract cases, or if there are other areas of law that he or she spends most of their time on. Breach of contract lawyers tend to develop an expertise in the subject over time. So, if they receive numerous cases like yours year after year, they will really know their stuff when it comes to your case. If they don’t spend a lot of time on breach of contract issues, they may not have the same level of knowledge as lawyers who do so.
Thirdly, you should think about the lawyer’s fee schedule and how he or she expects to be paid. For example, if a lawyer expects to be paid a full hourly rate before he or she begins working on your case, you may want to consider other options. There are some lawyers who offer free consultations and then will receive a percentage of any funds you are rewarded.