Texas Breach of Contract Lawyer

Serving the Greater Houston Area

When entering into a contract, each party agrees to certain terms and conditions that are legally binding. A breach of contract occurs when one party fails to fulfill their obligations as outlined in the agreement, whether it’s failing to deliver goods, providing substandard services, or not making a payment on time. 

For example, if a contractor does not complete a renovation by the agreed deadline, this could constitute a breach. To determine if you have a valid case for dispute, you must demonstrate that a contract existed, that you have upheld your end of the agreement, that the other party failed to meet their obligations, and that you incurred damages as a result.

If you are struggling with a contract breach in the greater Houston area and need clear guidance on your legal options, consider reaching out to Murrah & Killough, PLLC. Our seasoned breach of contract attorneys can help you understand your rights and take the necessary steps to protect your interests. 

Call us at 281-501-1601 to discuss your case and explore your legal options.

Contract Dispute Attorneys in Houston, TX

A breach of contract can lead to legal consequences or the need for dispute resolution. Such breaches can result in significant financial losses and damages. Resolving contract disputes typically involves:

• Negotiations
• Mediation
• Arbitration
• Legal interpretation of the contract’s language

Engaging an experienced Houston breach of contract lawyer from Murrah & Killough, PLLC, is recommended to review contract terms and guide clients through legal disputes. Our Houston breach of contract attorney provides personalized support to understand your rights and develop strategies to protect your interests in the event of a contract dispute.

Elements of a Valid Contract

A valid contract in Texas is made up of a few key parts. The offer must show that the person making it wants to enter into a binding agreement, and the terms must be clear and shared with the person receiving the offer. When the contract is accepted, it has to be just like the offer and this acceptance needs to be clearly shown to the person who made the offer.

The exchange of something valuable, known as consideration, is an important piece of any Texas contract. Everyone signing the contract needs to promise to give something of value for the contract to be real. Mutual agreement, or when everyone has the same understanding about the contract’s main points and subject, is looked at from an outside perspective to see if there’s a real agreement.

For a contract to be seen as valid and something you can enforce in Texas, it must be for something legal and carried out correctly, following Texas law. Even spoken contracts can be legally binding if they fulfill these requirements.

Types of Contract Breaches

There are four primary types of contract breaches:

• Material Breach: This type of breach occurs when one party fails to perform a core aspect of the contract, which results in significant harm to the other party. For instance, if a builder is contracted to construct a house and does not complete the project, this is a material breach because the main purpose of the contract has not been fulfilled.
• Minor Breach: Also known as a partial breach, this happens when the non-breaching party receives the substantial benefit of the contract despite a minor deviation from the terms. An example would be if a painter contracted to paint a house navy blue uses a shade of blue slightly lighter than agreed upon. The job is completed, but not exactly to the specified terms.
• Actual Breach: This breach happens when one party refuses to fulfill their part of the contract at the time when performance is due. For example, if a caterer fails to show up on the day of an event, they have committed an actual breach.
• Anticipatory Breach: This occurs when one party indicates in advance that they will not be fulfilling their contractual obligations. For instance, if a contractor informs a homeowner a month before the due date that they will not be able to complete a home renovation as agreed, it is an anticipatory breach.

Assessing Your Breach of Contract Case

Assessing the validity of a breach of contract case involves looking at how the terms of the contract were or weren’t carried out. The possibility of getting damages back is also important for figuring out how much the breach affected things.

If you think there’s been a breach of contract, it’s smart to talk to an experienced Texas business litigation attorney. At Murrah & Killough, PLLC, Our Houston breach of contract lawyer can look over your situation and suggest what to do next. Our skilled Houston breach of contract lawyer meticulously examines every detail of your case, offers personalized advice, and supports you through the resolution process.

Proving a Breach of Contract

To know if you have a valid case for dispute, you must be able to prove a breach of contract:

1. Existence of a Contract: There must be clear evidence that a contract was established. The contract should outline the terms agreed upon by all parties involved and can be in written or verbal form.
2. Fulfillment of Your Obligations: You need to provide proof that you have met, or made a genuine effort to meet, your responsibilities as detailed in the contract.
3. Breach by the Other Party: It must be established that the other party failed to comply with their contractual duties. This failure can range from not delivering goods or services to not making payments as agreed.
4. Damages Incurred: Finally, you need to show that you suffered losses or damages as a result of the other party’s breach. These damages can be financial, such as lost profits or additional costs, or non-financial, such as damage to reputation or loss of opportunity.

Having these four elements in place is crucial to forming the foundation of a breach of contract case and pursuing a claim effectively.

Legal Defenses in Breach of Contract Cases

In a breach of contract case, defendants can assert affirmative defenses such as:

• Ambiguous Contract Terms: This defense is used when the language in the contract is not clear, which can lead to different interpretations by each party.
• Mutual Mistakes: This occurs when both parties have a shared misunderstanding about a fundamental fact that is central to the contract.
• Fraudulent Inducement: This defense is claimed when one party is tricked into entering the contract due to deliberate deception by the other party.
• Estoppel: This principle prevents a party from arguing something contrary to a claim they previously made when the other party relied on that original claim.

• Impossibility of Performance: Such as when a natural disaster prevents one party from fulfilling their contractual obligations.

Texas Statute of Limitations for Breach of Contract Claims

In Texas, you have four years from when a contract breach happens to take legal action. If you wait longer than that, you won’t be able to bring your claim to court. There might be some special cases where the usual time limits don’t apply, so it’s a good idea to talk to one of our contract lawyers at Murrah & Killough, PLLC to understand your situation better.

Remedies and Damages in Breach of Contract Disputes

When a contract is breached, the injured party can seek damages to be placed in the same position as if the contract had been properly executed. For example, if a graphic designer was contracted to deliver a set of marketing materials by a certain date and failed to do so, the client could seek damages for the lost marketing opportunities and any additional costs incurred to hire another designer to complete the work in a timely manner.

Compensatory damages cover losses directly linked to the breach, including any foreseeable and related losses, as well as extra costs that came up because of the breach. If the breach also affected the plaintiff’s ability to use what was promised in the contract or harmed their reputation with lenders, they may seek damages for these impacts as well.

Monetary Damages

Monetary damages are awarded to compensate the non-breaching party for losses in breach of contract cases. General compensatory damages may be awarded if a contract is breached in good faith, to cover economic damages incurred. For example, if a supplier agrees to deliver materials to a construction company by a certain date, but an unforeseen and uncontrollable event such as a natural disaster disrupts transportation routes, causing a delay, this could be considered a breach of contract in good faith. The supplier intended to fulfill the agreement but was prevented from doing so by circumstances beyond their control.

For those requiring a deeper understanding of actual and liquidated damages, our Houston breach of contract attorney at Murrah & Killough, PLLC can provide the necessary guidance. Actual damages are intended to compensate for a proven loss, while liquidated damages refer to an amount that the parties agree upon within the contract to cover losses in case of a breach.

Equitable Remedies

Equitable remedies are legal solutions provided by courts in cases where monetary damages are insufficient or inappropriate. These remedies include:

• Specific Performance: This remedy compels the breaching party to fulfill their contractual obligations as agreed, instead of paying monetary damages.
• Injunctions: These are court orders that either prohibit a party from doing a specific act that would breach the contract or compel a party to do a specific act to prevent a breach.
• Rescission: This remedy cancels the contract, releasing all parties from their obligations and returning them to their pre-contract status.
• Reformation: A court may order the contract to be rewritten to reflect what the parties actually intended if the original agreement was based on a mutual mistake or was written in a way that doesn’t reflect the agreement due to fraud or inequitable conduct.

Contact Experienced Houston Contract Dispute Attorneys Today

Murrah & Killough, PLLC provides representation for a wide array of breach of contract disputes, using our knowledge of contract law to serve both individuals and businesses effectively. Not only do we draft and revise contracts to prevent breaches, but we also offer personalized litigation services if disputes arise, ensuring contracts are legally sound and our client’s needs are met.

At Murrah & Killough, PLLC, our Houston contract dispute attorney understands that a contract breach can pose significant risks to your assets and business or personal interests. Our approach is tailored to protect you proactively by drafting strong contracts that deter breaches and by enforcing agreements diligently when a breach occurs. Should you face a breach of contract, we are committed to preserving your rights and seeking remedies that address any harm you’ve suffered.

To set up an initial consultation, call us at 281-501-1601.