Breach of Contract Claims: How to Prepare Your Court Bundle

Last updated: March 2026

Quick Answer

A court bundle for a breach of contract claim in the Business and Property Courts must contain the contract itself, all relevant correspondence, witness statements, any expert evidence, a chronology, and a case summary. Civil Procedure Rules Practice Direction 57AB governs electronic bundles, whilst CPR Part 16 dictates what your particulars of claim must address. Getting your bundle right is not merely administrative — it directly affects how a judge perceives your case from the first page.

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Why Bundle Preparation Matters in Contract Disputes

Breach of contract claims are, by some margin, the most common type of commercial dispute heard in the courts of England and Wales. The Business and Property Courts — which sit within the High Court and handle the more substantial commercial work — deal with thousands of such claims every year, ranging from disputed supply agreements to complex construction contracts worth millions.

What separates a well-run case from a poorly run one is often not the underlying merits but the quality of presentation. Judges in the Business and Property Courts are experienced commercial practitioners who have seen every variety of contract dispute. They expect bundles that are logically structured, properly paginated, and free of irrelevant material.

If you are acting as a litigant in person (representing yourself without a solicitor), the bundle is your opportunity to demonstrate that you take your case seriously and that you have organised your evidence methodically. If you are instructing solicitors, understanding what goes into the bundle helps you work more effectively with your legal team and avoid unnecessary costs.

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Understanding the Legal Framework

What Constitutes a Breach of Contract?

Before assembling your bundle, it helps to understand the elements your case must establish. Under English law, a breach of contract claim requires you to prove:

1. A valid contract exists — whether written, oral, or partly both
2. The terms of that contract — what was actually agreed
3. The breach — how the other party failed to perform their obligations
4. Causation — that the breach caused you loss
5. Loss and damage — the financial or other consequences you suffered

Each of these elements needs documentary support in your bundle. A common mistake is focusing heavily on the breach itself whilst neglecting to prove the existence or terms of the contract with sufficient clarity.

Relevant Civil Procedure Rules

Practice Direction 57AB is particularly important because it sets out the specific requirements for electronic bundles in the Business and Property Courts, including formatting, pagination, and the use of hyperlinked indexes.

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Essential Documents for Your Bundle

The Contract and Related Documents

The contract is the foundation of your entire case. Your bundle should include:

• The signed contract — every page, including schedules and appendices
• Any amendments or variations — formal or informal, including email confirmations
• Terms and conditions — if incorporated by reference
• Pre-contractual correspondence — letters or emails showing what was negotiated and agreed
• Tender documents or quotations — if the contract arose from a tendering process

Practical tip: If your contract was formed orally or by a course of dealing, you will need to rely more heavily on correspondence, invoices, and witness evidence to establish the terms. Gather every email, text message, and letter that refers to what was agreed.

Particulars of Claim and Defence

Your statements of case set out the legal and factual framework for the dispute:

Correspondence and Notices

Commercial disputes invariably involve a paper trail. Include:

• Letters before action — the pre-action protocol requires a letter of claim giving the defendant a reasonable opportunity to respond (typically 14 days for straightforward cases, up to 3 months for complex ones)
• Responses to the letter before action
• Default notices or breach notices — formal notifications that obligations have not been met
• Without prejudice correspondence — only if the without prejudice privilege has been waived or the correspondence is relevant to costs (be very careful here)
• Key operational correspondence — emails and letters showing how the contract was performed or failed

Witness Statements

Witness evidence is frequently decisive in breach of contract cases, particularly where the terms were partly oral or where the factual circumstances of the breach are disputed.

CPR Part 32 and Practice Direction 32 govern witness statements. Key requirements:

• Statements must be in the witness's own words
• They must be verified by a statement of truth
• They should follow a logical chronological order
• They must identify documents referred to by their bundle page reference
• Exhibits should be clearly labelled and cross-referenced

Each witness should cover only matters within their own knowledge. A common error is having one witness address everything — including matters they did not personally observe. This weakens credibility.

Expert Evidence

Expert evidence is not always needed in breach of contract claims, but it may be essential where:

• Quantum is disputed — a forensic accountant may need to calculate lost profits
• Technical standards are in issue — for example, whether construction work met industry standards
• Valuation is required — what goods or services were actually worth

Under CPR Part 35, you cannot rely on expert evidence without the court's permission. If permission is granted, include in your bundle:

• The expert's report
• Any joint statement from experts (if the court directed a discussion between them)
• The expert's instructions and any documents provided to them

Chronology

A well-prepared chronology is one of the most valuable documents in any commercial bundle. It should:

• List key events in date order
• Include a brief neutral description of each event
• Reference the page numbers in the bundle where supporting documents can be found
• Be agreed between the parties where possible

Judges in the Business and Property Courts routinely read the chronology before anything else. If your chronology is clear, the judge will have a solid understanding of the dispute before the first witness is called.

Case Summary

The case summary is a concise document — typically no more than four to five pages — that sets out:

• The nature of the dispute
• The key issues the court must decide
• Each party's position on those issues
• Any agreed facts

Like the chronology, the case summary should ideally be agreed between the parties. Even if agreement is not possible, a well-drafted case summary demonstrates command of the issues and helps the judge focus on what truly matters.

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Structuring Your Bundle

Recommended Section Order

Practice Direction 57AB provides guidance on bundle structure for the Business and Property Courts. A typical breach of contract trial bundle follows this order:

Pagination and Formatting

Every page in your bundle must be numbered consecutively. In the Business and Property Courts:

• Electronic bundles must be in PDF format
• Pages should be numbered sequentially (not by section)
• The index must be hyperlinked to the relevant pages
• Documents should be in a logical order — typically chronological within each section
• Tabs or bookmarks should be used to mark each section

Avoid this mistake: Do not include every email ever exchanged between the parties. Judges are explicit about this — bundles that contain hundreds of pages of irrelevant correspondence frustrate the court and harm your case. Include only documents that are referred to in a statement of case or witness statement, or that are genuinely necessary for the judge to understand the dispute.

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Common Pitfalls to Avoid

1. Incomplete Contract Documentation

If your contract refers to standard terms and conditions, a specification, or a schedule, those documents must be in the bundle. Referring to a "Specification dated 14 March 2024" without including it is a surprisingly common error that can undermine your case at trial.

2. Failing to Prove Loss

Many litigants focus entirely on proving the breach and neglect the equally important question of loss. Your bundle should include clear evidence of the financial consequences — invoices, bank statements, accounts, or an expert report on quantum — that demonstrates precisely what you have lost and how.

3. Disorganised Correspondence

Correspondence should be in strict chronological order. Mixing up dates, duplicating emails, or including entire email chains (with the same text repeated five times in slightly different threads) makes the bundle unwieldy and difficult to navigate.

4. Ignoring the Pre-Action Protocol

The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct requires parties to exchange information and attempt to resolve the dispute before issuing proceedings. If you have not complied, the court may impose costs sanctions. Ensure your bundle demonstrates compliance — include the letter before action, the response, and any proposals for alternative dispute resolution.

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Using BundleCreator for Contract Dispute Bundles

Preparing a trial bundle for the Business and Property Courts is a substantial task, particularly if you are doing it for the first time. BundleCreator is designed to handle the formatting, pagination, and structural requirements so that you can focus on the substance of your case.

With BundleCreator, you can:

• Upload documents in any format and have them converted to PDF automatically
• Organise your bundle into the sections required by PD 57AB
• Apply consecutive pagination across the entire bundle
• Generate a hyperlinked index automatically
• Reorder documents with drag-and-drop simplicity
• Export a court-ready PDF that meets the requirements of the Business and Property Courts

Whether you are a litigant in person preparing your first bundle or a solicitor managing a complex multi-party dispute, the platform removes the manual formatting burden and reduces the risk of errors that can result in adjournments or adverse cost orders.

Try BundleCreator free for 14 days at BundleCreator.co

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the time limit for bringing a breach of contract claim?

Under the Limitation Act 1980, claims for breach of a simple contract must be brought within six years from the date of the breach. For contracts executed as deeds, the limitation period is twelve years. Time starts running from the date of the breach, not the date you discovered it — a distinction that catches many people out.

Do I need to send a letter before action?

Yes. The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols requires you to send a letter of claim setting out the basis of your case and giving the defendant a reasonable time to respond. Failure to follow the pre-action protocol can result in costs sanctions, even if you ultimately win your case.

Can I claim interest on a breach of contract?

Yes. Under section 35A of the Senior Courts Act 1981 (for High Court claims) or section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 (for County Court claims), the court has discretion to award interest on debts and damages. If your contract includes an interest clause, you may claim contractual interest instead. Late payment interest under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 may also apply to business-to-business transactions.

What is the difference between damages and specific performance?

Damages are a monetary award intended to compensate you for the loss caused by the breach. Specific performance is an equitable remedy that compels the defaulting party to perform their contractual obligations. Specific performance is only available where damages would be an inadequate remedy — for example, in contracts for the sale of unique property. The court will not order specific performance if it would require ongoing supervision.

How much does a breach of contract claim cost?

Court fees depend on the value of your claim. As at March 2026, issuing a claim in the County Court for a sum between £5,001 and £10,000 costs £455. Claims worth over £200,000 attract a fee of 5% of the claim value, up to a maximum of £10,000. Hearing fees, expert costs, and legal representation (if instructed) are additional. Costs in the Business and Property Courts can be substantial — budgeting carefully and considering proportionality is essential.

Can I include without prejudice correspondence in my bundle?

Generally, no. Without prejudice correspondence — meaning settlement discussions — is privileged and cannot be referred to at trial without the consent of both parties. The exception is "without prejudice save as to costs" correspondence, which may be shown to the judge when dealing with costs after judgment. Be very careful about this distinction, as including privileged material in your bundle can have serious consequences.

What happens if the other party does not comply with disclosure?

If the other party fails to disclose documents they are obliged to produce under CPR Part 31, you can apply to the court for an order compelling disclosure. In serious cases, the court may draw adverse inferences — meaning it may assume that the undisclosed documents would have been unfavourable to the party withholding them. Persistent non-compliance can result in the defaulting party's case being struck out.

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This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The law and procedure described applies to England and Wales. If you are unsure about your specific situation, seek independent legal advice.