Anticipatory Breach

Anticipatory breach occurs when one party in a contract clearly indicates that they will not fulfill their obligations before the deadline arrives. This announcement can be verbal or written. For example, if a contractor tells a homeowner weeks before a project is due that they won’t complete the work, that’s an anticipatory breach. The other party can choose to treat the contract as broken and may seek damages or pursue legal action right away, without having to wait for the actual deadline to pass. This helps protect parties from unnecessary losses due to unfulfilled agreements.