Breach of Contract — Meaning and Types

Breach of contract occurs when a party, without lawful excuse, fails or refuses to perform their obligations under a contract, or does something that makes performance impossible, or disables themselves from performing.

Types of breach, by timing:

• Actual breach — a party fails to perform their obligation exactly when performance is due. This may happen (a) at the very time fixed for performance (the party simply does not perform), or (b) during the course of performance (the party performs part of the obligation and then refuses or fails to complete the rest).
• Anticipatory breach — a party declares, before the time for performance has arrived, that they will not perform their obligation when it falls due — either expressly (openly stating they will not perform) or impliedly (doing some act that makes performance impossible, e.g. selling the very goods promised to someone else before the delivery date). …