‘X’ entered into a contract with ‘Y’ to supply him 1,000 water bottles @ ` 5.00 per water bottle, to be delivered at a specified time. Thereafter, ‘X’ contracts with ‘Z’ for the purchase of 1,000 water bottles @ ` 4.50 per water bottle, and at the same time told ‘Z’ that he did so for the purpose of performing his contract entered into with ‘Y’. ‘Z’ failed to perform his contract in due course and market price of each water bottle on that day was ` 5.25 per water bottle. Consequently, ‘X’ could not procure any water bottle and ‘Y’ rescinded the contract. Calculate the amount of damages which ‘X’ could claim from ‘Z’ in the circumstances? What would be your answer if ‘Z’ had not informed about the ‘Y’s contract? Explain with reference to the provisions of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.

BREACH OF CONTRACT- DAMAGES: Section 73 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 lays down that when a contract has been broken, the party who suffers by such breach is entitled to receive from the party who has broken the contract compensation for any loss or damage caused to him thereby which naturally arose in the usual course of things from such breach or which the parties knew when they made the contract to be likely to result from the breach of it. The leading case on this point is “Hadley v. Baxendale” in which it was decided by the Court that the special circumstances under which the contract was actually made were communicated by the plaintiff to the defendant, and thus known to both the parties to the contract, the damages resulting from the breach of such contract which they would reasonably contemplate, would be the amount of injury which would ordinarily follow from the breach of contract under these special circumstances so known and communicated. The problem asked in this question is based on the provisions of Section 73 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872. In the instant case ‘X’ had intimated to ‘Z’ that he was purchasing water bottles from him for the purpose of performing his contract with ‘Y’. Thus, ‘Z’ had the knowledge of the special circumstances. Therefore, ‘X’ is entitled to claim from ‘Z’ ` 500/- at the rate of 0.50 paise i.e. 1000 water bottles x 0.50 paise (difference between the procuring price of water bottles and contracted selling price to ‘Y’) being the amount of profit ‘X’ would have made by the performance of his contract with ‘Y’. If ‘X’ had not informed ‘Z’ of ‘Y’s contract, then the amount of damages would have been the difference between the contract price and the market price on the day of default. In other words, the amount of damages would be ` 750/- (i.e. 1000 water bottles x 0.75 paise).