Who Is Breaking the Contract?

A family child care provider recently decided to end her contract with a parent. She gave the parent a two-week notice, as she is required to do under her contract.

The parent was upset; she believed that since the provider didn't want to care for the child anymore, she was afraid the provider would treat her child differently during the two-week period. Therefore, the parent did not bring her child back and refused to pay for the two weeks.

The provider took the parent to small claims court and sued for payment for the two weeks. The judge ruled that the provider terminated the contract and ruled in favor of the parent.

What!

How did the provider lose in this situation? (This is a real case.)

Unfortunately, some judges listen to parents' complaints that their provider won't give adequate care after the provider gives notice to end the contract. I'm not sure there is anything the provider could have said in court that would have convinced the judge otherwise. But, without evidence the provider would treat the child differently, the judge's ruling doesn't make any sense and it insults the professionalism of the provider.

The parent clearly broke the rules of the contract by failing to pay for the two-week notice. If the parent wanted to end the contract, she should have terminated it under the rules in the contract (i.e. give a two-week notice).

If the parent thought that the provider was going to treat her child poorly, she should have raised this issue with the provider or her licensor. She did neither.

I have seen this happen in a few other small claims court cases. It's unfair that parents can impugn the integrity of their providers as a way to get out of a contract.

How to Avoid This Problem

The only sure way to prevent this from happening is to require parents to pay for the last two weeks in advance.

If the parent doesn't bring the child during the last two weeks, the provider keeps the money. It's unlikely the parent would try to take the provider to small claims court and I would hope that she lose if she did.

Providers sometimes worry that their contract won't be enforced in court. In this case, the provider lost, but the judge was wrong. Don't let one judge's opinion cause you to give up trying to enforce your contract.

Payment in advance is the best way to avoid going to court.

Tom Copeland - www.tomcopelandblog.com

Image credit: https://www.provincialcourt.bc.ca/enews/enews-28-02-2017

For more information, see my book Contracts & Policies.