Breach of Contract Expert Witness

What is a Breach of Contract?

Many businesses and individuals enter legally binding contracts that outline the responsibilities and obligations of involved parties.  Some obligations are explicit while others may be ambiguous. When one party fails to fulfill its end of the contract – this is known as a breach of contract.

Most breach of contract cases center around the same thing – money.  A breach of contract can occur within any type of industry and result in lost profits or lost business value.

Breach of Contract CPA Expert Witness

When parties cannot resolve disputes on their own or with a mediator, most will resort to filing a lawsuit. This is especially the case when the amount of money in question is material to the party.  A CPA expert witness is necessary for disputes involving complicated financial transactions or high-value losses.

A breach of contract expert witness can determine the amount of loss, and in some instances can help determine whether a breach even occurred.   For breach of contract cases, a judge or jury usually cannot arrive at these amounts without the help of a CPA expert witness.

Representative Breach of Contract Engagements

Key Sample Breach of Contract Representative Engagement

Peter Reilly v. Inquest Technology, a California Corp., dba In-Quest Technology; Dave Sighal; Pradeep Sethia (Eric S. Engel, H. Kim Sim – Conkle, Kremer & Engel).  Mr. Neches testified as an expert in California Superior Court, Orange County, on behalf of plaintiff in this breach of contract and fraud matter. In 2003, Inquest Technology and its owners, Dave Singhal and Pradeep Sethia, allegedly promised to Peter Reilly as commissions 50% of profits from sales resulting from contacts Reilly established. Reilly was paid some commissions as agreed, but in December 2008 defendants told Reilly he would not be paid any further commissions. Reilly sued Inquest and its owners for commissions owed. Mr. Neches testified regarding his analysis of defendants’ sales to relevant customers (the companies Triconex/Invensys), which he determined totaled $6,687,748 to date.  Mr. Neches also projected that defendants’ future relevant sales through 2015 would total $9,611,913.  Mr. Neches determined defendants’ gross profit margin to be 27.5%, from which he calculated the present value of historical and future unpaid commissions due Reilly to equal $2,065,702. Result: The jury awarding Reilly $2,065,702 in damages (the exact amount calculated by Mr. Neches). The Court found defendants’ conduct was a willful statutory violation and applied treble damages to increase the judgment to $6,197,106, plus attorney fees and expenses.  Alter ego liability was separately found by the court as to all defendants.  The Court’s judgment unanimously was affirmed by the Court of Appeal of the State of California.  (Click here for more information.)