Sammie Maness and SKM Wood Products, LLC v. Joannie Collins, Mike Smith, Josh Smith, and SKM, LLC

This appeal involves an employment contract. The plaintiff employee owned a manufacturing business. He sold the business to the defendant new owners, and agreed to stay on as a management-level employee. To that end, the plaintiff entered into a three-year employment agreement with the company, and signed a non-competition agreement. After a few months, the company's new owners terminated the plaintiff employee on the basis that he had not fulfilled his job duties. The plaintiff filed this lawsuit against the company and the new owners, alleging breach of the employment agreement. After a bench trial, the trial court held that the company breached the employment agreement by terminating the plaintiff's employment without cause, finding that one of the new owners prevented the plaintiff from performing his job duties. However, the trial court declined to award damages to the plaintiff employee because the plaintiff did not seek other employment, and thus failed to mitigate his damages. Both parties appeal. We affirm the trial court's finding that the company breached the employment agreement, finding that one of the new owners prevented the plaintiff from performing his job duties, and therefore the plaintiff's failure to perform under the employment agreement was excused. We reverse the trial court's holding on mitigation of damages, finding that the defendant company and the new owners were required to prove the availability of suitable and comparable substitute employment, and failed to do so.