Legal Corner: How do I prove a breach of contract?

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - Legal Corner answers viewers’ civil legal questions.

QUESTION: I have a landscaping business, and I have a contract with a local business. My worker and I have been mowing the business’s lawn and doing landscaping according to the contract. However, my company has not been paid in over two months.

Someone told me this might be a breach of the contract. How do I prove if this is a breach of my contract? Can I sue to get the money that I am owed?

ANSWER: Making a breach of contract claim requires evidence of four elements:

Existence of a Valid Contract

You must prove a valid contract exists and that it is legally binding, containing several components:

• An offer from one party
• Acceptance of that offer by the other party
• Consideration, or something of value exchanged between the parties
• An intention to create legal obligations
• Capacity (Parties must have the legal ability to enter into a contract)
• Execution and delivery of the contract

Note: If any of these components are missing, the contract may not be valid.

Performance of Obligations

The person attempting to enforce the contract must prove he performed the tasks or delivered the goods or services as specified in the contract. Without proof of his own performance, it may be difficult to hold the other party accountable.

Breach of Contract

There must be a demonstration that the other party breached the contract. This can involve showing that a person failed to perform the obligations outlined or that he did not perform to the agreed standards.

Damages Incurred

The complainant must show that he suffered actual damages because of the breach. This is usually in the form of financial losses, but it can also include other forms of harm caused by the breach. It is important to document losses and to provide evidence of the breach and losses.

QUESTION: My adult son has been diagnosed with multiple mental illnesses. Several people have told me I should call the parish coroner’s office for help with him.

What can the coroner do? I thought the coroner only deals with dead people.

ANSWER: A coroner’s duties are not limited to investigating the cause of many types of deaths, issuing death certificates, examining victims of a sexually oriented criminal offense, or performing or causing autopsies to be performed in deaths caused in violation of criminal statutes. They also perform commitment investigations.

In certain situations, the coroner may order an individual to be transported to a hospital for an examination if the individual is considered to be a danger to self or danger to others. This order is called an Order of Protective Custody (sometimes also called a commitment order).

If someone believes a person may need immediate examination or treatment, the steps for requesting an Order of Protective Custody are as follows:

• A witness to the individual’s behavior must physically come into the coroner’s office to report the type of behavior that has occurred.
• The witness will have to complete and sign paperwork showing what behavior they have witnessed.
• The witness will be interviewed by an investigator for additional information.
• The witness should also report any other attempts that have been made to obtain help for the individual.

It is important to know a witness can be fined or imprisoned if he/she makes false statements to have someone committed with an Order of Protective Custody.