Kenford Co. Inc. v. County Of Erie

67 N.Y.2d 257 (1986)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

County (D) contracted with Kenford (P) to construct and operate a domed stadium facility near Buffalo. The contract provided for construction to commence within 12 months of the contract date and a mutually acceptable 40-year lease for the operation of the facility to be agreed upon by the parties, or in the alternative if the 40-year lease could not be agreed upon in three months a 20-year management contract appended to the basic agreement would be signed. The parties never agreed upon the terms of the lease. The contract was breached because the construction of the facility did not begin within the one-year time period or any time thereafter. A summary judgment was issued ten years later against D for liability, and a damages trial produced an award in P's favor for millions of dollars. D appealed; the appellate court reversed the damages for the lost future profits and for certain out-of-pocket expenses and directed a new trial on other issues. On appeal, this court was concerned only with the award of damages for loss of prospective profits which the appeals court set aside. P appealed.