Britton
v. Turner
Supreme
Court of
6
N.H. 481.
Facts: The plaintiff and defendant
made a one-year employment contract. The
plaintiff stopped working after 9.5 months.
The jury awarded him $95 out of the full $120. The defendant appealed on the basis that the plaintiff
should get nothing because the work had been done under a so-called “special contract”.
Issue: May the breaching party
recover for services rendered?
Rule: NEW RULE! A hired laborer is entitled to compensation
for work actually performed unless there is an express stipulation to the
contrary in the contract.
Analysis: The court makes an analogy
between labor contracts and contracts to build houses. When you build only part of a house and then
breach, you are entitled to restitution damages for the value you conferred
upon the other party. The old rule was that
if you voluntarily failed to fulfill an employment contract, you were not
entitled to recover anything for the work you had done. The court feels that even though precedent
says differently, the better rule is the one above.
Conclusion: The court upheld the jury’s
verdict.