How much a breach actually costs the defendant often turns less on the breach itself than on what the innocent party did next. This chapter starts with the doctrine of mitigation — its effect on recovery, the burden of proof and the standard of reasonableness rather than perfection — before fixing the date from which the obligation arises, including after an accepted repudiation. It then examines what reasonable steps demand, from the refusal to require extraordinary or risky measures to when an offer to cure must be accepted, and the financial consequences: recoverable mitigation costs, losses increased by reasonable efforts, and the line between deductible benefits and collateral ones. The chapter closes with the available-market rules in sale of goods, the position of the wrongfully dismissed employee, and the distinct treatment of debt claims, where affirmation and the requirement of a legitimate interest take mitigation out of the picture.
