TITLE II. COMPENSATORY RELIEF. CHAPTER I. DAMAGES IN GENERAL. CHAPTER I. DAMAGES IN GENERAL. ARTICLE I. GENERAL PRINCIPLES. ARTICLE I. Person suffering detriment may recover damages. Detriment, what. Injuries resulting or probable after suit brought. GENERAL PRINCIPLES. SECTION 3281. Person suffering detriment, may recover damages. 3283. Injuries resulting or probable after suit brought. SEC. 3281. Every person who suffers detriment from the unlawful act or omission of another, may recover from the person in fault a compensation therefor in money, which is called damages. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1832. SEC. 3282. Detriment is a loss or harm suffered in per son or property. This word is used in order to avoid the repetition of the words "loss or harm" in the numerous places in which they must otherwise occur. Injury signifies the wrongful act, and not its results, while on the other hand there may be loss without injury. The phrase “damnum absque injuria," is familiar to lawyers. The word "harm alone would be inadequate to express all the meaning of "loss." N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1833. SEC. 3283. Damages may be awarded, in a judicial proceeding, for detriment resulting after the commencement thereof, or certain to result in the future. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1834. ARTICLE II. INTEREST AS DAMAGES. SECTION 3287. Person entitled to recover damages, may recover interest thereon. 3288. In actions other than contract. 3289. Limit of rate by contract. 3290. Acceptance of principal waives claim to interest. Person recover entitled to damages, may recover interest SEC. 3237. Every person who is entitled to recover damages certain, or capable of being made certain by calculation, and the right to recover which is vested in him upon a particular day, is entitled also to recover interest thereon. thercon from that day, except during such time as the debtor is prevented by law, or by the act of the creditor, from paying the debt. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1835. other than contract. SEC. 3288. In an action for the breach of an obligation In actions not arising from contract, and in every case of oppression, fraud or malice, interest may be given, in the discretion of the jury. Sedgw. Dam., 385, 386; Wilson vs. Conine, 2 Johns., by contract. SEC. 3289. Any legal rate of interest stipulated by a Limit of rate contract remains chargeable after a breach thereof, as before, until the contract is superseded by a verdict or other new obligation. This rule is established in California, by statute (Kohler vs. Smith, 2 Cal., 597). The common law rule is otherwise. Compare Lawrence vs. Leake & Watts Orphan House, 2 Den., 577. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1837. SEC. 3290. Accepting payment of the whole principal, Acceptance as such, waives all claim to interest. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1838. of principal waives claim to interest. ARTICLE III. EXEMPLARY DAMAGES. SECTION 3294. Exemplary damages, in what cases allowed. Exemplary damages, in what cases allowed. SEC. 3294. In any action for the breach of an obligation not arising from contract, where the defendant has been guilty of oppression, fraud or malice, actual or presumed, the jury, in addition to the actual damages, may give damages for the sake of example, and by way of punishing the defendant. In this the Commissioners have taken the rule as now settled in this State by the Court of Appeals (Hunt vs. Bennett, 19 N. Y., 173; and see Johnson vs. Jenkins, 24 N. Y., 252; Fry vs. Bennett, 1 Abb. Pr., 289; 4 Duer, 247; Brown vs. Chadsey, 39 Barb., 253, 259; Sharon vs. Mosher, 17 Barb., 518). The propriety of allowing damages by way of punishment has been, however, very earnestly and ably questioned. See the discussion of this subject in Sedgwick on Damn., 3d ed., Chap. 18, and especially p. 477, note 2; and Appendix. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1839. NOTE. The same rule prevails in this State. (Wilson vs. Middleton, 2 Cal., 54; Nightingale vs. Scannell, 18 Cal., 315; Dorsey vs. Manlove, 14 Cal., 553. CHAPTER II. MEASURE OF DAMAGES. ARTICLE I. DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT. II. DAMAGES FOR WRONGS. III. PENAL DAMAGES. IV. GENERAL PROVISIONS. ARTICLE I. DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT. SECTION 3300. Measure of damages for breach of contract. 3302. Of which the parties have notice. 3303. Damages must be certain. 3304. Breach of promise to pay liquidated sum. 3305. Dishonor of bills of exchange. 3306. Breach of covenant of seisin, etc. 3307. Rescission of contract by covenantee, when. 3308. Breach of certain Code covenants, how determined. 3309. Damages where title is void. 3310. Damages where title is defective or disputed. 3311. Failure to perfect title not to preclude obtaining relief, when. 3312. On payment of costs before action or judgment, covenantor may perfect title. SECTION 3313. Breach of Common Law Covenant against encumbrances. 3314. Damages where encumbrance is upon only a part of the property. 3315. Breach of Special Code Covenants against encumbrances. 3317. Breach of agreement to buy real property. 3318. Breach of agreement to sell personal property, not paid for. 3327. Carrier's delay. 3328. Breach of warranty of authority. 3329. Breach of promise of marriage. NOTE. The following is Sec. 1840 of the New York Civil Sec. 1840. For the breach of an obligation arising from Note A.-Griffin vs. Colver, 16 N. Y., 489; Had- Note B.-This provision adopts the suggestion of Note C.-This clause is plainly a just qualification of the preceding one. The three following sections have been substituted for the one New York section. Notes A, B, C, refer to sections as follows: Note A, to Sec. 3300; Note B, to Sec. 3301; Note C, to Sec. 3302. We think the reasons for making the change will be obvious. The change is only in the form of expression. damages for breach of contract. SEC. 3300. For the breach of an obligation arising Measure of from a contract, the measure of damages, except where otherwise expressly provided by this Code, is the amount which will compensate the party aggrieved for all the detriment proximately caused thereby. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1840. Must be in contempla. tion of parties. Of which the parties have notice. Damages must be certain. Breach of promise to SEC. 3301. When the detriment is reasonably within the contemplation of the parties at the time of entering into the contract, it is proximate detriment. SEC. 3302. When the party in fault, at the time of entering into the contract, or at any time before breach, and while it is in his power to perform the contract on his part, has notice of detriment which would, in the ordinary course of things, result from such breach, such detriment is proximate. SEC. 3303. No damages can be recovered for a breach of contract, which are not clearly ascertainable in both their nature and origin. SEC. 3304. Griffin vs. Colver, 16 N. Y., 489, 495. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1841. The detriment caused by the breach of an pay liquida. obligation to pay money only, is deemed to be the amount due by the terms of the obligation, with interest thereon. ted sum. Dishonor of bills of exchange. Breach of covenant of seisin, etc. SEC. 3305. Sedgw. Dam., 236; Code La., 1929. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1842. For the dishonor of foreign bills of ex change, the damages are prescribed by Secs. 3235, 3237 and 3238. SEC. 3306. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1843. The detriment caused by the breach of a Common Law Covenant of "seisin," of "right to convey," of "warranty," or of "quiet enjoyment," in a grant of real property, is deemed to be 1. The price paid to the grantor; or, if the breach is partial only, such proportion of the price as the value of the property affected by the breach bore, at the time of the grant, to the value of the whole property. 2. Interest thercon for the time during which the grantee derived no benefit from the property, not ex. ceeding four years. 3. Any expenses properly incurred by the coven antee in defending his possession. N. Y. C. C., Sec. 1844. |