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Breach of Contract and the New Remedy of Account of Profits
Author(s) -
Chetwin Maree C.,
Round David K.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
abacus
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.632
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1467-6281
pISSN - 0001-3072
DOI - 10.1111/1467-6281.00115
Subject(s) - damages , breach of contract , plaintiff , discretion , law , law and economics , business , economics , political science
This paper outlines the general loss–based damages rule when a breach of contract is established, in light of the competing policy objectives of enhancing contract rights v efficient breach. The economic premises behind the theory of efficient breach are briefly discussed. The paper then summarizes the legal background to the House of Lords decision Attorney–General v Blake and Another [2000] 3 WLR 625 where it was ruled that in exceptional cases the plaintiff who has suffered no loss as a result of the breach may recover the resultant profits that the defendant has gained. The court was reluctant to specify fixed rules as to when the discretion should be exercised. The article concludes that the remedy was specifically devised for Blake’s case and will have extremely limited application.