Coconut Creek Breach of Contract Attorney

A deal that looked solid on paper has stopped performing, the other side is no longer returning calls or paying what the agreement says, and you have to decide quickly whether to push, negotiate, or sue. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles business and real estate litigation for owners, investors, and families in Coconut Creek and throughout Broward County and Palm Beach County, and a Coconut Creek breach of contract attorney from our team can tell you where you stand before you commit to a course of action.

Coconut Creek sits in northern Broward County, so a contract suit between two local parties usually belongs in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County. If the other party is across the county line in Palm Beach County, the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit may be the proper forum instead. Where you file, how much is at stake, and what the written agreement says about venue and fees all shape the case before a single argument is made.

The first decisions tend to matter most: whether the breach is serious enough to end your own performance, whether to demand cure in writing, whether you need a court order to freeze the situation, and how much time you have left. The sections below walk through those choices and the kinds of contract disputes our attorneys see most.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for a Contract Dispute

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, investors, and families in South Florida’s difficult business and real estate disputes, serving clients in Coconut Creek, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and across Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Complex contract litigation has been at the center of founder Andrew M. Schwartz’s work through 37 years in litigation. He was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989, earned his undergraduate degree at Emory University in 1986, and received his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989. Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, brings years of experience in business and real estate cases in state and federal courts.

Contract cases usually turn on exact wording and on the history of how the parties actually dealt with each other, and we prepare them with that level of detail. We keep a strict 24 hour return call policy, and we answer the phone when you call.

Results matter more than adjectives. After a 5-day bench trial, a Broward County circuit judge issued a 32-page final judgment in May 2024 awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. Specific performance, an order forcing the other side to do what it promised, is one of the hardest remedies to win, and it required the kind of careful record-building that contract work demands. We are also experienced in mediation and arbitration, and we look for the resolution that serves your goals and budget rather than stretching a case out for its own sake.

Contract Disputes We Handle for Coconut Creek Clients

• Purchase and Sale Agreements: Failed closings, buyers who walk away from a deposit-backed contract, and sellers who back out after a better offer arrives. Remedies can include damages or an order compelling the sale.
• Operating and Shareholder Agreements: Disputes between LLC members and shareholders over buyout terms, management rights, distributions, and what the agreement actually permits an owner to do.
• Commercial Leases: Landlord and tenant conflicts over rent, build-out obligations, personal guarantees, and early termination at retail and office space in the Coconut Creek area.
• Construction Contracts: Unfinished or defective work, payment disputes between owners, contractors, and subcontractors, and change orders that were never put in writing.
• Loan Documents and Guarantees: Default and acceleration disputes, guarantor liability, and disagreements over what a lender or borrower was required to do.
• Unpaid Distributions and Missing Funds: A partner or manager who cannot account for company money, diverted funds, disputed capital contributions, or commingled accounts, often paired with accounting and fiduciary duty claims.
• Family and Friend Business Agreements: Siblings, spouses, and longtime friends who built a company on a handshake or a thin document and now disagree about what was promised.
• Restrictive and Service Agreements: Disputes over vendor, distribution, and service contracts where performance, payment, or termination rights are contested.

What to Do Right After a Contract Is Breached

Start by pulling together everything in writing: the signed agreement, every amendment, invoices, emails, text messages, and payment records. Courts decide these cases largely on documents, and the version of events that is easiest to prove usually wins. Resist the urge to rewrite history in angry messages to the other side. Anything you send can end up as an exhibit.

Next, read the agreement for the clauses that control your next move. Look for notice and cure provisions, which may require you to give written notice and an opportunity to fix the problem before you can claim default. Check for a mediation or arbitration clause, a choice of venue, and an attorney’s fee provision. Skipping a required notice step is one of the most common ways a strong claim gets weakened.

Then think about your own performance. If you stop performing because the other side breached, you need to be confident the breach was serious enough to justify it. If you are wrong, you can turn yourself from the injured party into the breaching party. This is a decision worth making with a lawyer rather than alone.

Deadlines are the other thing you cannot ignore. Florida allows five years to sue on a written contract and four years on an oral or implied one. Fraud claims generally run four years from discovery, with an outer limit of twelve years, and an action for specific performance carries a one-year period. Negligence claims were cut to two years in 2023, but the five-year written-contract period was not changed. Because different claims arising from one dispute can carry different clocks, do not assume the longest one applies to everything.

Where the case is filed depends on the amount in dispute. County court handles claims up to a jurisdictional ceiling that is adjusted periodically, small claims court handles the smallest disputes, and the circuit court hears larger cases. A Coconut Creek contract dispute of significant value would typically be heard in Broward County circuit court, and for disputes with a Palm Beach County defendant, the Fifteenth Circuit may apply. Broward also has a complex business division that handles large business and construction litigation, and a case can be filed directly into it under that circuit’s administrative procedures. Federal court in the Southern District of Florida, which sits in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, may be available when the parties are from different states and the amount in controversy qualifies.

If money or property is at risk of disappearing while the case is pending, the question is not only whether to sue but whether to ask for emergency relief. Courts can issue temporary and permanent injunctions to preserve assets and protect business interests. We pursue that relief when waiting for a final judgment would leave you with a win that cannot be collected.

Remedies, Damages, and Choosing a Strategy

The right remedy depends on what you actually need. Money damages compensate you for the loss the breach caused. Specific performance orders the other party to complete the deal, which matters most in real estate, where no amount of money replaces a particular property. Rescission unwinds the contract altogether, and Florida allows four years to bring that claim. Some agreements limit damages or set a fixed amount in advance, and those clauses can change the value of a case dramatically.

Litigation is not the only route. Many contract disputes resolve through a firm demand letter, negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, especially when the parties still have a business relationship worth saving. Where the dispute involves co-owners, a negotiated buyout or structured separation can end the conflict faster and cheaper than a trial. Andrew Schwartz tells clients that most of them think they want the most aggressive lawyer possible, when what they usually want is a lawyer who acts as the situation requires and uses finesse when finesse will do, at a cost that makes sense.

When the breach involves a partnership or company, the contract claim often sits alongside other claims: breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, or judicial dissolution of an LLC or corporation. Florida law lets a member or manager seek dissolution on specific grounds, such as an unresolvable deadlock that threatens irreparable harm, misappropriated company assets, or conduct that makes it impracticable to carry on under the operating agreement. A court may also appoint a receiver or order a buyout of a petitioning owner’s interest. Sorting out which claims to bring together is part of the strategy from day one.

Questions About Breach of Contract Claims

What counts as a breach of contract in Florida?

A breach occurs when a party fails to do what a valid contract requires, whether by not performing, performing late, performing defectively, or refusing to perform at all. You generally need to show a valid agreement, the other side’s failure to perform, and damages caused by that failure.

How long do I have to file a breach of contract lawsuit?

Five years for a claim founded on a written contract and four years for oral or implied contracts. Related claims such as fraud, rescission, or specific performance carry their own periods, so each claim should be checked separately.

Does my contract need to be in writing to enforce it?

Not always. Oral and implied agreements can be enforced in Florida, but they are harder to prove and have the shorter four-year period. Certain types of agreements, such as some real estate contracts, must be in writing to be enforceable at all.

Should I stop performing if the other side breaches first?

Only after careful thought. If the breach is material, you may be excused from further performance, but if you misjudge it, you can end up in breach yourself. Check the agreement’s notice and cure terms and get advice before you stop.

Can I recover my attorney’s fees?

Florida generally follows the rule that each side pays its own fees unless a contract or statute says otherwise. Many commercial agreements contain a prevailing-party fee clause, which can cut both ways, so it is worth reading before you file.

What is specific performance, and when is it available?

It is a court order requiring a party to carry out the contract, most often used in real estate sales where the property is unique. It is an equitable remedy, the action carries a one-year period, and the court has discretion in granting it.

My contract says disputes go to arbitration. Can I still sue?

Usually not for the covered claims. Arbitration clauses are generally enforceable, and a court will often send the dispute to arbitration. Our attorneys handle arbitration and mediation as well as courtroom litigation.

How long does a contract case take in Broward County?

It varies with the amount at stake, the number of parties, and how much discovery is needed. Simple disputes can resolve within months through negotiation or mediation, while contested cases that reach trial take considerably longer. Emergency injunction requests move on a much faster track.

What if the other party is in another state?

You may still be able to sue in Florida, depending on the contract’s venue clause and the defendant’s connections to the state. Out of state parties can also affect whether federal court is available. We represent clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut with South Florida interests and handle the local appearances.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer for a smaller contract dispute?

Often a well-written demand letter from counsel resolves a smaller dispute without a lawsuit, and the cost can be modest compared with what is owed. Whether to go further depends on the amount, the strength of the documents, and whether the other side can pay a judgment.

Can a breach of contract claim be combined with a claim that someone took company money?

Yes. When a partner or manager diverts funds, the same facts can support claims for breach of the operating or shareholder agreement, breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, and recovery of the money, along with emergency relief to stop assets from being spent.

Do you take cases referred from other lawyers?

Yes. A significant part of our practice comes from other attorneys, including out of state lawyers whose clients have Florida disputes, and we keep referring counsel informed throughout.

Serving Contract Dispute Clients Across Coconut Creek and South Florida

We represent clients in Coconut Creek and the surrounding northern Broward communities, including Margate, Coral Springs, Tamarac, Parkland, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Lauderhill, Sunrise, Plantation, and Fort Lauderdale. Our work extends north into Palm Beach County, where we serve clients in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Lake Worth, Wellington, West Palm Beach, and Palm Beach Gardens. Whether your dispute is with a neighbor in the next community or a counterparty in another state, the case often lands in Broward or Palm Beach County courts, and we handle the filings and hearings so you do not have to travel for each one.

Talk to a Coconut Creek Breach of Contract Lawyer Before the Clock Runs Down

If the other side has stopped performing, the best time to get advice is before you send a demand, stop paying, or let a deadline slide. A Coconut Creek breach of contract lawyer at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can review your agreement, explain which claims and remedies fit your facts, and recommend whether negotiation, mediation, or a lawsuit makes the most sense. Call our team to schedule a consultation and get a clear picture of your options.