In the case of Pat and Harry, the contract is valid, and everyone is obliged to perform their duty to fulfill their obligation. Upon successful completion of the contract, Pat would make a profit of $5000. However, the plaintiff found another job that he carried out within the period and made a profit of $4200. From the case above, it would be difficult to award any form of damages to the plaintiff. This is because Pat has not suffered any monetary loss from the contract. He has not incurred any expenses towards fulfilling the contract, and therefore no damages can be awarded (Beale, 2010; Scott & Kraus, 2013).
It is possible to state that Pat was put in a position he would have been had he successfully performed the contract and realized $5000 as profits. In this case, he has a right to damages by the losses in value, consequential or incidental loss, less avoided cost or loss for not performing the contract. However, he managed to get another job that earned him $4200 as profits. This implies that the total loss incurred during the period was $800 (Beale, 2010; Scott & Kraus, 2013).
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To succeed in claiming damages for the loss, Pat has to prove that the parties foresaw the loss as brought about by the breach when the contract was made. In this case, it followed from the cause of events, or there were exceptional circumstances beyond the ordinary course of events. The lost profits are not recoverable because there are no expectancy damages. Similarly, Pat did not take any action that indicates the performance of the contract. He has not incurred any expenses to fulfill his obligation and therefore cannot claim damages for any loss (Beale, 2010; Scott & Kraus, 2013).
The case does not indicate any failure from the plaintiff to perform his duty. In this instance, he can sue Harry and claim for damages for breach of contract. However, damages are not awarded to enrich individuals but to compensate them for losses incurred while executing the contract. Since no actual loss was incurred, Pat cannot succeed in claiming for damages from Harry (Beale, 2010; Scott & Kraus, 2013).
References
Beale, H. G. (2010). Contract law: Cases, materials and text on contract law . Oxford: Hart.
Scott, R. E., & Kraus, J. S. (2013). Contract law and theory: selected provisions, Restatement of contracts, Uniform commercial code and CISG . Newark, NJ: LexisNexis
