Breach of Contract: Enforce your rights in WA

Whether a contract has been breached against you, or you're the one facing a claim, the steps below will help you protect your position and know when it's worth getting advice.

How to manage a breach of contract immediately

First, resist the urge to react. Re-read the contract carefully, including any dispute resolution clause that sets out how disagreements must be handled. Keep communicating with the other party, in writing where you can, because many disputes are misunderstandings that resolve with a clear conversation. Document everything: emails, invoices, delivery records and file notes will all become evidence if the matter escalates.

If informal contact hasn't worked, the next formal step is often a letter of demand. The federal government's guide to preventing, managing and resolving disputes sets out this escalation path and offers useful templates. However, for anything of real value, it's worth having the letter reviewed by a lawyer before you send it.

How to prevent a breach of contract in the first place

The cheapest dispute is the one that never happens, and prevention almost always comes down to the actual contract itself. Clear written agreements, with defined obligations, timelines, payment terms and a dispute resolution clause, give both parties certainty and remove the ambiguity most disputes grow from.

If your business uses standard-form contracts with consumers or small businesses, the terms also need to be fair. Courts have long been able to declare unfair terms void, but since November 2023 businesses can also face significant penalties just for including or relying on them, and the protections now cover more businesses than before. The ACCC's guidance on contracts and unfair terms explains what's covered and who falls within these protections.

Get help to resolve your dispute

Going to court isn't the only option, and it definitely shouldn't be the first. Alternative dispute resolution (negotiation and mediation) is faster, cheaper and less damaging to the business relationship than litigation.

Small business disputes in WA

WA businesses can access a free dispute resolution service through the Small Business Development Corporation, which helps resolve business-to-business disputes with an impartial third party. Their guide to managing a business dispute is a good starting point.

Federal dispute resolution support

At a federal level, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman will point you to the right low-cost service. These services are excellent for straightforward matters, but where the amount at stake is significant, the contract is complex, or the other side has already engaged lawyers, commercial legal advice protects your position properly.

The cost of resolving a dispute or breach of contract

Resolving a breach early, through a well-pitched letter of demand or mediation, is a fraction of the cost of litigation. Litigation can be expensive, time-consuming, and hands the outcome to a court rather than to you. That's exactly why early advice saves you money: identifying the strength of your position up front avoids a fight that wasn't worth having, or secures a settlement before costs escalate. Every matter is different, so while we can't give an exact figure, you're very welcome to get in touch for an estimate based on your situation.

How Forbes Kirby approaches a breach of contract

When a breach can't be resolved through negotiation, our litigation and dispute resolution team steps in. Their approach is built on a simple principle: the best legal outcome isn't always the best commercial one, so they stay focused on the practical result that actually protects your business. Wherever possible, that means resolving the matter before it reaches a courtroom, through strategic pre-litigation advice that lays out your options clearly. Where a matter does proceed, you'll always have a principal involved from the first conversation through to resolution. You'll also always know where you stand and what comes next.

Ongoing legal support, so you're not facing it alone

Most breaches trace back to something that could have been caught earlier. Maybe a loose clause, an unsigned variation, a contract no one reviewed. Our General Counsel service gives your business ongoing access to a commercial lawyer who knows your operations, reviews your agreements before they're signed, and is accessible and available when something goes wrong, all without the cost of an in-house legal team. General Counsel turns legal support from a scramble in a crisis into a steady part of how you run and protect your business.

If you're dealing with a breach of contract now, or want to make sure your contracts protect you before one happens, get in touch with our team for a clear view of where you stand and what to do next.

This article is general information only and is not legal advice. Every situation is different, so please get specific advice for your circumstances before acting.