I have often said San Diego and California business disputes focus on the damages. Mastery of the damages is one of the keys to resolving business disputes quickly and efficiently.  The other is a well-documented, thorough chronology of events.  With these tools, your Watkins Firm attorney is able to resolve the vast majority of our business dispute cases through effective, leveraged negotiation.  This is the fastest and least expensive path to resolve any business-related dispute.

Unlike real estate and disputes where it is possible to enforce “specific performance” and other legal remedies, the principle focus of a business dispute is financial damages.  Damages represent the actual financial losses which result from another company’s failure to fulfill a contractual agreement or provide goods or services, as well as the cost to find another solution.  Damages will also include the difference in price between the benefit of the bargain anticipated in the original agreement and the ultimate agreement which replaced it.

For example.  Company A agrees to provide 100 widgets to Company X for $100,000 but is unable to fulfill their obligations due to international market issues (supply).  Company X must seek another vendor for the widgets and ultimately contracts with Company Z to purchase the 100 widgets for $125,000.  What are the damages?  There is a cost (in terms of labor and time) to research other suppliers and find a new source (100 hours at $38.00 per hour or $3800.00).  There was a difference in cost between the actual purchase price of $125,000 and the original price of the contract with Company A for $100,000 which amounts to $25,000.  The damages in this case may be at least $28,800.00 in the most basic of terms.  If business disputes focus on damages the key to resolving them is understanding the issues of each side while aggressively defending our client’s interests.

Pro-Tip: “What are damages? Great question! When I advise my clients, I tell them the most important item in litigation is not whether you are liable or they’re liable, or somebody breached. I say the three most important things in a lawsuit are: damages damages damages.

And I say, it just like, you know, location, location, location, because it’s that important in the type of damages you can obtain are so varied that if you focus on whether you’ve been damaged under the law, there will be a statute or a case that says you are entitled to those damages. So if you track it backwards from I lost a hundred thousand dollars in this deal and how you lost it on those facts and what you did lose, you’ll probably find 99% of the time, a statute or a law or a case or something that gives you a remedy, a right to those damages and how you can collect.

Financial damages are what the law can afford you in a civil case. In a criminal matter, the law can afford you incarceration of the offending criminal, but in a civil matter, since your contract and your agreement was mostly about money, then you get money back. And the only time you don’t just get money is when it’s a case where a law will afford you an injunctive or provisional remedy, which is for unique types of damages and unusual circumstances.

Why is mastering the damages in the cases so important?  First of all, when you are in a lawsuit over a breach of contract or anything, you are investing money to get money. So if you don’t know how much you’re fighting for, how can you know how much you should spend?

Secondly, if you master the damages, if you can prove what the damage to you is, if you obtain and collect all the evidence about the damages, even before you worry about why you were damaged or what the law was breached, you can understand the case, the way a litigator understand understands it. You can help your lawyer and in the long run, you’ll be more successful in your case, by thinking about how you were damaged for, and then working it way back to, uh, who breached what and who broke what law.” – Dan Watkins, Founding Partner

The Watkins Firm has more than four decades of experience in breach of contract cases, the defense of breach of contract and the resolution of business to business disputes here in San Diego.  We are often able to negotiate a “settlement” which allows Company A a few extra weeks to provide the parts to Company X while lowering the cost per widget to accommodate the failure to fulfill the original agreement.  We work with our clients to take prompt and prudent action to mitigate the damages under California law when necessary, while resolving business disputes quickly and cost-effectively.

San Diego business disputes focus on the damages.  If you are in the midst of a business dispute or are concerned about the potential for business litigation we invite you to review our podcast Episode 5 – Breach of Contract as well as the strong recommendations of our clients and contact the Watkins Firm or call 858-535-1511 for a complimentary consultation today.  Learn about the unique strategy the Watkins Firm employs to successfully resolve business disputes in the shortest possible time frame and a cost-efficient manner.