Reliance Cooperage Corp.
v. Treat
195 F.2d 977 (8th
Cir.1952).
Facts: The
plaintiff contracted with the defendant to buy staves[1]. The defendant breached the contract and the
plaintiff sued, asking for the difference between the contract price and the
market price of staves on the last agreeable date of delivery. The trial court awarded the plaintiff damages
mitigated by the fact that the plaintiff could have purchased similar staves
before the contract period was over.
Issue: To
what damages is the plaintiff entitled?
Rule: The
doctrine of anticipatory breach by repudiation is meant to help the injured
party and thus does not apply when it helps the breaching party.
Analysis:
The court says that you don’t need to mitigate damages until you have actually
incurred those damages. In theory, the
defendant could have performed the contract any time up to the final date of
delivery.
Conclusion: The
judgment of the trial court was reversed.
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Damages