Breach of Contract Nevada: Everything You Need to Know

A breach of contract in Nevada occurs when one party does not meet the terms of the contract and the plaintiff can prove that the loss is because of the breach. 3 min read updated on November 17, 2020

A breach of contract in Nevada occurs when one party does not meet the terms of the contract, and the plaintiff can prove the type and extent of losses they suffered because of the breach. Parties cannot claim breach of contract in Nevada without having a valid and enforceable contract in place.

Elements of a Contract

A verbal contract can be legally binding, but to avoid any confusion, a written contract is best. A valid and enforceable contract will clearly define all details of the agreement, including:

• Clear identification of all parties involved in the contract.
• The obligations and rights of each party included in the contract.
• The services or products offered by one party to the other party.
• Evidence that the other party agreed to the offer.
• Any considerations that each party gave or obtained through the contract.
• The terms and conditions of any payments by the parties involved.
• The terms for ending the contract.
• The terms for resolving any disputes in the contract.

Breach of Contract Elements

For someone to claim breach of contract in Nevada, the following elements must occur:

• A valid contract must exist between the plaintiff and the defendant.
• The defendant didn't pay the other party for their services or the defendant only partially performed the services agreed to in the contract.
• The defendant's failure to provide products or services led to a material breach of the contract. A material breach occurs when the breach is significant enough to destroy the integrity of the contract.
• The defendant didn't offer sufficient reason for failing to pay for services or not completing the services they were contracted to perform.
• The plaintiff was in compliance with their contract terms prior to the defendant's failure to provide services or products or the plaintiff provided sufficient reason to excuse not meeting the terms.
• The plaintiff suffered damage because of the breach.
• The plaintiff's damages were a foreseeable result of a particular breach.

Damages of Breach of Contract

Breach of contract law in Nevada allows one party to file a lawsuit against the other party to obtain damages for the breach. To pursue the claim, the party must be able to prove that the breach occurred.

If the parties involved can't settle the breach on their own without legal action, it is recommended that the complainant hire an attorney. In cases where the court awards damages to the plaintiff, they are enforcing what is appropriate under the contract.

In many breach of contract cases, the plaintiff sues for monetary damages as compensation. Monetary damages are also known as compensatory damages because they compensate the plaintiff for the actual financial losses they suffered. Types of compensatory damages include:

• Expectation damages, which is the amount of money or value of the goods the plaintiff expected to receive if the defendant had satisfied the contract conditions. The plaintiff can refer to the contract terms or the market value of the promised products or services to decide this amount. For example, if an electrician installs a wiring system in a house and the homeowner agrees to pay $2,000, the electrician's expectation damages, if the homeowner doesn't pay, would be $2,000.
• Consequential damages, which is the amount of damages the plaintiff suffered indirectly because of the breach. Because it is difficult to figure out how much money the plaintiff could have gained without the breach, this amount is often speculation. For example, a limousine rental company contracts a mechanic to repair one of their vehicles and the mechanic doesn't complete the repairs. The consequential damages equal the amount of rental fees the company would have received for renting the limo. In cases where the plaintiff is seeking consequential damages, they must prove that the loss of income was foreseeable and was a direct result of the breach.

In some breach of contract cases, the plaintiff pursues other types of damages. For example, if the owner of a property decides not to sell and there is a contract for the sale in place, the buyer could ask for damages that forces the defendant to sell the property as agreed in the contract.

If you need help with a breach of contract in Nevada, you can post your legal need on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.