LEGL Exam 2

Hot Coffee Main Topics

Hot Coffee discusses several cases and relates each to tort reform in the United States:

1. Liebeck v. McDonald's Rests., No. CV-93-02419, 1995 WL 360309 (N.M. 2d Jud. Dist. Aug. 18, 1994) (judgment awarding Liebeck $2.86 million in "hot coffee" case), vacated, 1994 WL 16777704 (Nov. 28, 1994): how tort cases are publicized to instigate tort reform.

2. Gourley v. Neb. Methodist Health Sys., 663 N.W.2d 43 (Neb. 2003) (upholding Nebraska's statutory cap of $1.25 million on damages in medical malpractice actions).

3. Prosecutions of then–Mississippi Supreme Court Presiding Justice Oliver E. Diaz Jr. for bribery: how judges were elected for their positive stance on tort reform and were influenced by campaign contributions. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce (not a United States government agency, but a lobbying group for businesses) funded negative campaign ads against judicial candidate Oliver E. Diaz and in support of candidate Keith Starrett. Oliver E. Diaz estimates ~$1,000,000+ dollars was spent on Keith Starrett's behalf for the judicial election.

4. Jones v. Halliburton Co., 625 F. Supp. 2d 339 (S.D. Tex. 2008) (refusing to enforce mandatory arbitration of Jones's employment contract with respect to her claims of assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent hiring, retention, and supervision, and false imprisonment), aff'd, 583 F.3d 228 (5th Cir. 2009)

Liebeck v. McDonald's Restaurants

This segment features interviews with Liebeck's family and focuses on their perspective of the trial. This included news clips, comments from celebrities and politicians about the case, as well as myths and misconceptions, including how many people thought she was driving when the incident occurred and thought that she suffered only minor superficial burns, while in truth she suffered severe burns and needed extensive surgeries. The concept of accountability is also discussed. The film also discussed in great depth how Liebeck v. McDonald's Restaurants is often used and misused to describe a frivolous lawsuit and referenced in conjunction with tort reform efforts.^[2] It argued that corporations have spent millions distorting certain tort cases in order to promote tort reform.

Jamie Leigh Jones v. Halliburton Co.

Senator Al Franken features prominently in this segment. He worked closely with Jamie Leigh Jones to get her case heard in court and proposed legislative changes to mandatory arbitration clauses. Subsequent to the film's release, Jones succeeded in trying her civil case before a federal court in Houston. However, she was unsuccessful in convincing a jury that she had been raped or that KBR (then part of Halliburton) had engaged in fraud when inducing her to sign her employment contract. There was a long list of inconsistencies and contradictions exposed in her story during the trial.^[4]

Jamie Leigh Jones update

Federal Law: Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act 2022 - invalidates pre-dispute arbitration agreements and class-action waivers for sexual assault and sexual harassment claims

More modern case - Disney wrongful death case 2023

Despite informing the waitstaff multiple times and receiving assurances that the food was allergen-free, Tangsuan suffered a severe anaphylactic reaction shortly after the meal and died at a hospital.

Disney made national headlines by attempting to dismiss the lawsuit. The company argued that Piccolo had agreed to mandatory individual arbitration for all disputes against Disney when he briefly signed up for a trial subscription to Disney+.

On February 27, 2026, Piccolo filed a voluntary dismissal with prejudice against all defendants after the matter was resolved, though terms of any potential financial settlement were kept confidential by the attorneys.

Mandatory arbitration

a contractual rule requiring parties to resolve legal disputes through a private arbitrator instead of a public court

Pro and Cons of mandatory arbitration

Pros - Faster, lower cost, confidential, fewer ethical concerns when there is an equal power balance

Cons - Limited discovery, potential bias, power imbalance

Tort reform (In the hot coffee documentary)

Laws passed which place limits or caps on the type or amount of damages that can be awarded in personal injury lawsuit

Tortious conduct/ tortious behavior

any wrongful act or omission—other than a breach of contract—that violates a legal duty and causes harm, allowing the injured party to sue for civil damages

Tortfeasor

a person or business that commits a civil wrong (a tort) which causes physical, personal, or financial harm to another party

3 Types of Torts

Negligence - The wrongdoer caused injury because they failed to use reasonable care

Intentional Torts - The wrongdoer meant to cause harm or knew their action would cause damage

Strict Liability Torts - The wrongdoer is responsible for damages even if they did not act with intent or carelessness.

The difference is the intent of the tortfeasor

Which burden of proof applies to tort cases?

Preponderance of the evidence - meaning it is more likely than not (greater than a 50% chance) that the defendant is at fault.

First type of tort: Negligence

A failure to use reasonable care that causes injury

Accompanying terms of Negligence

Unreasonable actions

Careless actions

Breach of a duty of care

Five Elements of Negligence

1. Defendant owed the Plaintiff a duty of care

2. Breach of the duty

3. Causation in fact

4. Proximate causation

5. An actual injury

Remember the Plaintiff has the burden of proo

First Element: Duty of care

Duty of care : obligation not to harm others or their property

Foreseeable risk of harm in the relationship that the Defendant should reasonably anticipate

Hot Coffee case: McDonald’s has a duty to serve safe food

Second Element: Breach of the duty

Defendant breaches the duty when they fail to act as a reasonable person would under similar circumstances

For professionals, the standard: reasonable professional

Professional negligence gives rise to malpractice claims

Doctor, lawyer, accountant, etc

Third Element: Causation in Fact

AKA “but-for causation”, “cause in fact”, “actual causation”

The act or failure to act must have actually caused the injury

Fourth Element: Proximate Causation

The Plaintiff's injuries must be a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the defendant’s breach of duty

“Reasonably foreseeable Plaintiff”

Proximate cause limits the scope of causation

Palsgraf vs.Long Island Railroad Co., 248 N.Y. 339, 162 N.E. 99 (1928) - Proximate Causation example

Case Overview

• Plaintiff: Helen Palsgraf, a woman waiting on a station platform.

• Defendant: Long Island Railroad Co.

• The Incident: Railroad employees pushed a man boarding a moving train to help him. The man dropped an unmarked, newspaper-wrapped package containing fireworks.

• The Injury: The fireworks exploded, and the shockwave tipped over a heavy scale at the other end of the platform, injuring Mrs. Palsgraf.

Legal Issue and Ruling

• The Question: Did the railroad owe a duty of care to a plaintiff standing far away, making her injury a reasonably foreseeable result of the employees' actions?

• The Ruling: No. Judge Benjamin Cardozo, writing for the majority, ruled that negligence is not an absolute tort—it requires a violation of a duty owed to the specific plaintiff. Because the package did not look dangerous, the guards could not foresee any risk to someone standing where Mrs. Palsgraf was. Therefore, the railroad was not liable

Fifth and Final Element: Actual Injury/Actual Damages

Physical, mental, property, economic/lost wages, reputation

Hypothetical: a fender bender causes no damage to the car and no physical harm to the driver or occupants. Could there be an actual injury? Yes, this could still affect them mentally or make them late for important work

Defenses to a Negligence Claim

1. Defendant says they weren’t negligent! (arguing that the Plaintiff can’t prove all elements)

2. Plaintiff contributed to the harm

•In some states this bars recovery, in some states it reduces it by percentage

3. Assumption of the Risk

Contributory negligence

A strict legal defense stating that if an injured person is even slightly at fault for their own injury, they cannot recover any financial compensation from another party

Completely bars recovery if the plaintiff contributed to their own harm even slightly

• Not many states use this anymore

Comparative negligence

A legal principle that reduces a plaintiff's financial recovery in a lawsuit based on the percentage of fault they contributed to an accident

(aka comparative responsibility/comparative fault)

• Reduces the damage award proportionally

State by state determination for Comparative Negligence

Examples:

• Georgia: Plaintiff may not recover if they are 50% or more at fault. Total liability reduced by plaintiff’s percentage of fault so long as plaintiff 49% or less at fault.

• California: “Pure” comparative negligence – even if Plaintiff is 99% at fault they can recover 1%

In some states, even if Plaintiff is 1% at fault, they get nothing (very few states) (this is called contributory negligence)

Assumption of risk

Plaintiff knowingly and willingly undertakes a dangerous activity

•Bungee jumping, ice skating, or even someone standing under a hanging sign that can fall off and injure them

•But the risk must actually be foreseeable

How to recognize situations that could give rise to civil negligence

By preventing them

Second Type of Tort: Intentional Torts

Deliberate actions that cause injury

Types of Intentional Torts

• Assault

• Battery

• Intentional infliction of mental distress

• Invasion of privacy

• False imprisonment and malicious prosecution

• Trespass

• Conversion

• Defamation

• Fraud

• Interference with business relations

Assault

Causing immediate apprehension of injury (no touching

Battery

Unconsented-to touching for the purposes of offense/harassment or injury

Trespass

Entering onto land or into property (land, home, car, computer) without authorization

Conversion

Theft of chattel (any piece of movable personal property that is not permanently attached to land or buildings.)

Unlawful exercise of dominion and control over another’s property that substantially interferes with property rights

Like owning a pet! :(

False Imprisonment

Intentional, unjustified confinement without consent

Can be an issue if a store detains a suspected shoplifter!

Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (abbreviated IIED)

Outrageous, intentional conduct that carries a strong probability of causing mental distress

Must be OUTRAGEOUS

Defamation (it’s a tort as well as an exception for First Amendment speech)

Slander - spoken lie

Libel - written lie

Truth of the statement is an absolute defense

Fraud

An intentional misrepresentation of a material fact that is justifiably relied upon by someone to their injury

(can be a crime and a contract issue as well)

Ex: SEC vs Holmes - lied about blood-test technology capabilities

Injurious Falsehood:

Product disparagement or trade disparagement against a business/the product that causes them financial loss

• beyond just opinion

• different from defamation!

2. false statements

3. publication

4. actual economic loss to business

Intentional interference with contractual relations

Intentionally inducing contract employees to break their contracts

Intentionally interfering with a merger

This is beyond simply competition

Third Type of Tort: Strict Liability

Strict liability torts impose legal responsibility for an injury even though a liable party neither intentionally nor negligently caused the injury

Strict products liability - most relevant to businesses

• Applies against only commercial sellers

• Commercial seller that sells a defective product to someone that is injured is then liable under a strict liability theory

• Defenses: Product was not defective; customer assumed the risk

• assumption of risk example: Cracked ladder

Types of Money Damages For Any Tort Claims

Only money is awarded in tort trials, not specific performance - BUT a settlement agreement can include a public apology, change in business policy, etc.

Two types of money damages in tort claims:

• Compensatory - reimburse an injured plaintiff for actual losses suffered and restore them to the position they were in before the tort

• Punitive - punish a defendant for malicious, reckless, or intentional misconduct and deter similar future actions.

Contracts

Promises that are enforceable by courts and have predictable consequences for performance failures.

Must be mutual exchange (NOT gifts)

Something of value (not necessarily worth money!)

Does not always have to be in writing

Main ideas of contracts

Meant to facilitate business

Prevent fraud

Courts WANT to enforce - the Court will rarely cancel or change a contract

Common Law

governs contracts for things other than goods

Uniform Commercial Code UCC

Governs contracts for sales of goods for commercial sellers

Selected Differences between Common Law and UCC Contracts

Elements of a contract

• Offer

• Acceptance

• Consideration

also

• Legality

• Competence

Offer to Contract

Offeror - makes the offer

Offeree - may accept or not

• Contains a specific promise and a specific demand

• Offeror must intend to make the offer by making a commitment to the offeree.

• Contractual terms must be definite and specific enough for a court to enforce

Offer Termination Before Acceptance

• Revocation - Offeror withdraws the offer

• Rejection - Offeree expressly declines the offer

• Counteroffer - Offeree responds with different terms (kills original offer)

• Lapse of time - Passage of a stated deadline (Expires after a reasonable time if unstated.)

• Subject matter destruction - The essential item is destroyed

• Offeror death or incapacitation

• Subject matter illegality - New law makes the deal illegal

Mirror image rule

Acceptance must match the offer exactly to create a binding contract – this is common law, not UCC!

Example: What is an offer and what is acceptance?

Marcy posts fliers for her lost dog offering $500 if found. She puts her phone number on the fliers.

Drake finds the dog but doesn’t call Marcy. He shows up with it at Marcy’s door.

Has there been a valid offer? Valid acceptance?

Yes for both

Acceptance of Offer

An expression of acceptance or a written confirmation is treated as an acceptance.

Silence - Being silent on the offeree’s part does not imply acceptance

Mailbox rule: Acceptance becomes legally binding when the offeree dispatches it

Consideration

Receipt of a legal benefit or the suffering of a legal detriment.

Example: Carla trades her bicycle to Dan in exchange for Dan’s guitar.

Consideration: Carla’s bicycle and Dan’s guitar.

Example: Alice agrees to mow Bob’s lawn every Saturday for a month. In return, Bob agrees to pay Alice $100.

Consideration: Alice’s service and Bob’s payment

Consideration Continued

Party to an agreement does not give consideration by promising to do something that he or she is already obligated to do.

Example: A contractor agrees to finish a kitchen renovation by the original deadline if the homeowner pays an additional $1,000.

Why it's not consideration: The contractor is already bound by the original contract to meet the deadline.

Example: A landlord promises to let a tenant stay in the apartment for the remainder of the lease if the tenant pays an extra $200.

Why it's not consideration: The landlord is already obligated to let the tenant stay under the existing lease

Performance made before the discussion of the agreement does not count

Option: Agreement to not revoke an offer for a certain period, supported by the offeree’s consideration.

A promise to keep an offer open for a certain time period must be supported by the offeree’s consideration. An options contract is a financial agreement that gives the buyer the right—but not the obligation—to buy or sell a at a specific price before or on a set expiration date.

What is the consideration in these examples?

1. A customer slips and falls in your business. You offer them $2000 in exchange for them not suing you. The Business: Pays $2,000 cash.The Customer: Gives up their legal right to sue for injuries (known as "forbearance").

2. A player will agree to avoid reckless activities via a signed contract in exchange for a set salary. The Team: Pays a set salary.The Player: Agrees to restrict their personal freedom by avoiding reckless activities.

3. Brittney agrees to sell her car to Bill for $1,000. Brittney: Transfers ownership of her car.Bill: Pays $1,000 cash.

4. You hire a new employee and, as part of the job offer, you require them to sign a non‑compete agreement. The Employer: Provides a job offer, employment, and a salary.The Employee: Agrees to restrict their future employment options after leaving.

Leonard v. Pepsico, Inc., 210 F.3d 88 (2d Cir. 2000)

Case Overview

• Plaintiff: John Leonard, who attempted to redeem 7 million Pepsi Points to claim a military fighter jet.

• Defendant: PepsiCo, Inc., which ran the "Pepsi Stuff" promotion.

• Holding: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the district court's summary judgment in favor of PepsiCo.

Core Legal Reasoning

• Lack of an Offer: Advertisements are generally treated as invitations to make an offer rather than binding offers, unless they are clear, definite, and explicit, leaving nothing open for negotiation.

• The "Reasonable Person" Standard: The court concluded that the commercial's presentation of a Harrier Jet was clearly hyperbolic, satirical, and humorous (an "adolescent fantasy") rather than a serious commercial offer.

• Reference to the Catalog: The ad directed viewers to the official Pepsi Stuff catalog, which did not list the Harrier Jet as an available item.

• Statute of Frauds: The alleged agreement also failed to satisfy the requirements of a written contract under the Statute of Frauds.

Response to the Pepsico case

Not a valid offer because it is obviously a joke/ over the top - puffery (an exaggerated, subjective, or boastful claim made in advertising or sales that no reasonable person would take as a literal, factual guarantee)

AND

probably barred by statute of frauds

Promissory estoppel

When promisee relies on a promisor’s promise to his or her economic injury, the promisee MIGHT be able to enforce the promise even without a K

1. promise

2. reasonable reliance

3. the reliance on the promise caused loss or harm

Examples of promissory estoppel

1. Job offer withdrawal

2. Promise to transfer property

3. Tuition promise

Common K term

Accord and satisfaction: Resolving a dispute over an amount owed by reaching a compromise (aka settlement)

Express contracts

Arise from interactions in which parties discuss/write the promised terms of agreement. (typically what we think about as a contract)

Implied-in-fact contracts

Arise from the conduct of the parties rather than from words

Which are express and which are implied in fact?

1. Mortgage - express

2. Asking a consultant for business advice. - ambigious

3. Restaurant Dining - implied

4. Taxis - implied

5. Ubers/rideshare - ambigious

6. Haircut at a Salon - implied

7. Prenuptial agreement - express

Implied-in-law AKA Quasi-Contracts

•Judicial remedy to prevent one party from receiving unjust enrichment.

•Remedy applies when no actual K exists to cover the dispute.

(compare to implied in fact contract, which is actually a contract)

Implied in fact Ks and implied in law Ks (AKA quasi Ks) are different from a gift!

Courts look closely at intent and conduct to decide which one applies.

In a gift, the giver expects nothing in return—it’s a one-sided act of generosity

Contractual Enforcement Terminology

Enforceable - A valid agreement with all necessary elements (such as offer, acceptance, and consideration) that a court will legally uphold and enforce if breached

Unenforceable - A contract that may be valid in principle but cannot be enforced in court due to a procedural defect or technicality, such as violating the Statute of Frauds or an expired statute of limitations. If both parties voluntarily perform the terms, the contract can still succeed

Void - An agreement that has no legal effect from the very beginning because it lacks essential requirements or involves illegal purposes, making it a complete legal nullity that neither party can enforce

Voidable - A contract that is initially valid and binding, but contains a flaw (such as fraud, duress, or a party lacking capacity like a minor) that allows one injured party to cancel or void it. If the injured party chooses not to cancel, the contract can remain fully enforceable

Examples of void contracts AKA void agreements

•“Contract” for something illegal

•Agreements that require commission of a crime or tort

•Where one party is mentally incapacitated/mentally unsound (dementia, etc.)

Basically means a court will NOT even view agreements as contracts if the agreement is for something illegal or one party is incapacitated

Voidable - different from void!!!

Can be canceled or enforced—but only by one of the parties - see next slides

(Void means there was never really a contract to begin with)

Capacity of Parties - voidable Ks

1. Minors:

• Contract is voidable only by the minor.

• May be ratified when minor reaches age of majority.

• purchases necessaries, that is, food and clothing.

2. Intoxicated or temporarily mentally incompetent persons

• Contract is voidable at the election of the intox/incapacitated person

Question - if the minor misrepresented their age, can they still choose to end the contract without legal liability?

Short answer: probably yes in most states BUT they may fact certain consequences like promissory estoppel damages, the minor may have to return any products or pay the value of the product or service, the minor may be subject to a tort lawsuit for fraud

Some states say NO the minor can be held to the contract if they had lied about their age in the formation of the contract as long as the minor knew what they were doing/intentional misrepresentation

Non-compete clause

a contract term that stops an employee from working for a competitor or starting a similar business after leaving a company

Lawful Purpose - Continued

• Covenants not to compete AKA non-compete agreement: there are limits

  • Usually not enforced for lower paid employee

  • Time and geographic limit

Examples

a dentist sells their practice and agrees not to open another clinic within 10 miles for 3 years,

a software company hires a developer to work on a proprietary app. When the developer leaves, they’ve agreed not to work for a competing tech firm within a 50-mile radius for 2 years

Be Smart About Signing a Non-Compete

Which are likely to be enforceable or not?

1. Employee agrees that, for a period of twelve (12) months following termination of employment, Employee will not provide substantially similar sales management services for a competing medical device company within a 25-mile radius of any office where Employee regularly worked during the last year of employment. Likely Enforceable

2. For a period of two (2) years following termination of employment, Employee shall not solicit business from any customer with whom Employee had material business contact during the final twelve (12) months of employment. Likely Enforceable

3. Employee shall not work for any competitor anywhere in the United States for five (5) years following termination. Likely Unenforceable

4. Employee shall not work in any capacity for any business involved in technology. Highly Unenforceable

5. Employee may not directly or indirectly work for, own stock in, consult with, or otherwise have any connection to any business that competes with Employee Likely Unenforceable

Lawful Purpose - Continued

Non-disclosure Agreements (NDA’s): legally binding contract that establishes a confidential relationship between parties

Sample language NDA’s

“Employee agrees not to disclose any proprietary information, including but not limited to product roadmaps, source code, marketing strategies, and investor communications, during or after employment.”

Will courts enforce NDA’s about something illegal?

Short answer is NO

Defenses to K Enforcement

Many defenses

Main ones:

“There was no K!” - arguing that an essential element is lacking

or

If there was a K, is it now found to be void or voidable?

Defenses: No K Because Agreement Lacked Mutual Understanding

(Basically saying there was no agreement)

Fraud: Intentional misstatement of fact that induces another to enter into a contract. (punitive damages applicable)

Innocent misrepresentation – no intent to defraud - makes the contract voidable by the innocent party

More Defenses

Mistake:

•Mutual mistake: Both parties are wrong → contract may be voidable by either party.

•Unilateral mistake: One party is wrong → contract usually stands unless the other party exploited or knew of the error. (Courts usually decide that adults are responsible for reading the contracts, and if they don’t, that their fault!)

More Defenses

Duress: Threat of force. - Force can be physical or economi

What will a Court do with a K case?

• Decide if there is a K and if it was breached

  • If breached, by whom?

Money Remedies:

• Liquidated damages

• Specific performance

• Other financial awards - compensatory, consequential

If there is no K, court has nothing to enforce

then can consider promissory estoppel or implied in law/ quasi contrac

What will a Court do with a K case?

•sever the unlawful parts and keep the lawful ones in place (severability)

and then enforce the K or impose damages under the K

• construe the K in favor of the innocent party (when there is fraud)

• impose fines and other penalties

• void the K - rare but happens with fraud, etc

Severability Example Language

“If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

Oral Contracts

•Generally as enforceable as written agreements.

•Informal

•Greater potential for fraud

Statute of Frauds

Legal requirement that certain contracts be in writing:

Business contracts required in writing:

• Sale of an interest in land.

• Collateral promise to pay another’s debt.

• Contracts that cannot be performed in a year (ex: a 2-year employment contract)

• Sale of goods of $500 or more. (Pepsi Fighter Jet??)

• Prenuptial agreements

Which of the following must be in writing to be enforceable?

1. A 24-month lease Must be in writing

2. A 12-month lease Orally

3. Renting a sailboat for $800 Orally

4. “Be my nurse until I get better” Orally

5. Hiring painters to paint a warehouse Orally

6. You promise to pay the loan your friend took out to pay for school Must be in writing

Which of the following must be in writing to be enforceable?

1. A contract for an influencer to post a thousand posts on TikTok and receive $10,000 Orally

2. A contract for the sale of a thousand shirts to a store for $1,000 total In writing

3. A mortgage In writing

4. A pre-nuptial agreement In writing

5. An agreement to build a building Orally

6. An agreement for a band to play at an event for $10,000 Orally

7. Agreement to sell a brand new Corvette for $300 Orally

8. Buying 120 Frappuccinos at Starbucks for $1,000 cash. Orally

9. Eating at a restaurant with a bill totaling over $500 Orally

Exceptions to the Writing Requirement

• Part performance

• Rules involving goods

  • Specially made goods

  • Goods already received

• if both parties admit in court that there was an invalid oral K

Why are we here?

• If all parties are happy and have no disputes, we don’t need all this (or they may reach an accord and satisfaction and never go to court!)

• These rules arise when one or both parties are not happy

• WHY all these complicated rules?

Rules of Interpretation

• Standard English OR industry language/terms/trade usage

• Example: “Rose” or “Rosé”

• Boilerplate

• Parties type or handwrite additional terms

• Vague terms

digital contracts – impossible for you to write on them

Parol Evidence Rule

• (Parole - in criminal law; supervised release from custody)

• Prohibits testimony in court about the oral negotiation that results in a written K.

• Applies to evidence of oral agreements made at the time of or prior to the written K

Parol Evidence Rule Example

• The Situation: A buyer and a seller sign a written contract for the sale of a car for $20,000.

• The Side Discussion: Before signing, they talked about the seller including a free set of winter tires. However, the final written contract does not mention the tires.

• The Outcome: Under the parol evidence rule, the buyer cannot tell the court about the earlier conversation to force the seller to hand over the tires. The court relies only on the final written text.

Three Levels of Performance

• Complete performance

• Material Breach

• Substantial performance (halfway between complete and breach)

What is a material breach?

Non-payment

Non-delivery

Substandard quality - goods, services, or products fail to meet established specifications, legal requirements, or accepted performance standards

Violation of the non-compete or NDA

This list is not complete, courts may find other actions to be a material breach

Excuses for Nonperformance

Party who refuses to perform a promise can be sued for breaching the agreement.

BUT a legitimate excuse for nonperformance results in a party being discharged from contractual performance