Business and Commercial Litigation
Commercial Remedies
The measure is the value of the promised performance less costs avoided, plus incidental and consequential losses. It is the standard contract measure and exceeds reliance and restitution in most cases.
Recovery requires reasonable certainty.
Alternative Names:
Benefit of the Bargain Damages|Expectancy Damages
Why it Matters?
The reasonable certainty requirement limits recovery for new ventures and speculative profits, which is where expectation claims fail rather than on the measure itself. Costs avoided must be deducted, and plaintiffs sometimes claim gross revenue without subtracting the expenses they never incurred. Contractual limitations excluding consequential damages also cap expectation recovery at direct losses, which is why the limitation clause governs the analysis.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
Where do expectation claims fail?
What must be deducted?
