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Simple English definitions for legal terms
Speculative damages
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A quick definition of Speculative damages:
Speculative damages: When someone sues another person or company, they may ask for money to cover any losses they suffered because of the other person's actions. Sometimes, the person suing asks for money that they might lose in the future, but they're not sure if they will actually lose it. This is called speculative damages. For example, if someone planned a big event and hired a famous singer to perform, but the singer canceled at the last minute, the event planner might sue the singer for the money they lost because of the cancellation. But if the event planner also asked for money they might have made from ticket sales if the event had gone ahead, that would be speculative damages. Courts usually don't give people money for speculative damages because they're not sure if the person would have actually lost that money.
A more thorough explanation:
Definition: Speculative damages refer to financial losses or expenses that a plaintiff claims, but are contingent upon a future occurrence, purely conjectural, or highly improbable. These damages are not generally awarded by courts.
For example, in the case of Chicago Coliseum Club v. Dempsey, the plaintiff, Chicago Coliseum Club, sued Jack Dempsey for breach of contract. The Club had contracted Dempsey to fight a boxing match six months later, but Dempsey informed the Club that he would not fight the match. The Club sought lost profits from possible ticket sales from the match, but the Court denied the claim because there was no way to ascertain what the attendance may have been had the fight occurred.
Another example of speculative damages could be a plaintiff claiming future lost wages due to an injury that may or may not prevent them from working in the future. Since it is uncertain whether the injury will actually prevent the plaintiff from working, the damages claimed are considered speculative.
The examples illustrate that speculative damages are based on uncertain or hypothetical events that may or may not occur in the future. Since courts cannot predict the future, they generally do not award these damages.