Brief Fact Summary. Kanavos (Plaintiff) and Hancock Bank & Trust (Defendant) had an agreement, which provided Plaintiff with a right of first refusal on shares of stock. Plaintiff sued when Defendant sold the shares to a third party without first offering Plaintiff an opportunity to purchase them. Over objections, the trial court ruled in favor of the Plaintiff. The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts remanded the case to determine whether Plaintiff would have been able to pay for the shares if offered an opportunity to purchase them.
Synopsis of Rule of Law. The ability of one party to perform under a contract with concurrent obligations is relevant to the question of a repudiating party’s liability for damages in an action for breach of contract.
The law does not require a party to tender performance if the other party has shown that he cannot or will not perform.
View Full Point of LawIssue. Is a party’s ability to perform his side of concurrent obligations relevant to the question of whether he has suffered recoverable damages in a breach of contract action?
If so, which party bears the burden of proving (in)ability to perform?
Held. Yes. Under the parties’ agreement, Plaintiff’s obligation to pay for the shares during the option period and Defendant’s obligation to sell him the shares were roughly concurrent duties. Even if one party repudiates the agreement, if neither party is able to perform, neither party is entitled to recover damages. If one party repudiates this kind of an agreement, but the other party was not able to perform its own obligations, the nonrepudiating party has not suffered recoverable damages.
The nonrepudiating party bears the burden of proving his ability to perform his obligations under the agreement if he wants to recover damages for breach. The information is within better reach of the allegedly injured party, and the repudiating party should not have to bear the burden of disproving an essential element of the case.
Discussion. In many instances, the law of contracts strives to put parties in a position equal to the position they would be in if their contract was actually performed, i.e., give them the benefit of their bargain. Unjust enrichment is highly disfavored. As a consequence, a party who has not suffered any damages by even a wrongful repudiation will generally not recover more than nominal damages. Therefore, the question of a party’s ability to perform its own obligations is highly relevant to the question of whether he has suffered recoverable damages because of the other party’s breach.