Hawkins v Mc Gee PDF

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Summary

A case brief on Hawkins vs McGee....

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Case Brief

Case Name: Hawkins v. McGee Year Decided: 1929 Court: Supreme Court of New Hampshire

Factual Summary: (Briefly summarize the facts that led to the lawsuit being filed and any critical evidence that was introduced at trial, such as expert opinions and witness testimony.) The plaintiff, Hawkins, underwent surgery to repair damaged scar tissue on his hand, a result of burns he sustained from contact with an electrical wire, and the defendant, Dr. McGee, allegedly gave him a 100% guarantee that he would be able to repair the plaintiff’s hand by grafting skin from his chest to his hand. When the surgery was unsuccessful, the plaintiff sought damages in the belief that the defendant violated the contract to which both parties agreed on prior to the plaintiff’s surgery.

Question(s) Presented: (Identify the central legal question(s) the court is attempting to answer in the case. There should not be more than three total, and usually there is only one).

What constitutes the restitution of damages in a breach of contract?

Reasoning: (Detail how the court explained the reasoning behind its answer(s). This should include a description of the legal rules it applied, how those rules applied to the facts of the case, and any other reason the court used to justify its conclusions.)

The plaintiff’s damages is the difference between the actual position of the plaintiff and the position said plaintiff would have been in had the contract not been breached. In this case, it meant equaling the difference of the value of what the plaintiff was promised to receive and what the plaintiff actually received. The court stated, however, that the extent of the plaintiff’s suffering did not measure up to a reasonable difference in value. The pain and suffering endured by the plaintiff was foreseeable as it is in any given serious surgical operation....