Parker v. 20th Century Fox Film Corp.
Citation: Supreme Court of California, 3 Cal. 3d 176 (1970)
Facts
Shirley MacLaine Parker (the actress) contracted with 20th Century Fox to star in a musical film called “Bloomer Girl” to be filmed in California, for a salary of $750,000. Fox cancelled the film and offered Parker the lead role in a different film, a western called “Big Country, Big Man,” to be filmed in Australia under materially different terms and conditions. Parker declined the substitute role and sued for her full contracted salary.
Issue
Whether a wrongfully discharged employee has a duty to mitigate damages by accepting substantially different or inferior substitute employment offered by the breaching employer.
Holding
The California Supreme Court held that Parker was entitled to her full $750,000 salary. The substitute role was different and inferior to the contracted role, and a wrongfully discharged employee need not accept different or inferior employment to mitigate damages.
Rule
A party who is wrongfully discharged from a contract must mitigate damages by accepting comparable substitute employment, but is not required to accept employment that is different in kind or inferior in quality. Failure to accept a genuinely comparable substitute may reduce damages, but refusal of inferior or different work does not.
Significance
The leading case on the duty to mitigate damages in employment contracts, teaching the important distinction between “comparable” substitute work (which must be accepted) and “different or inferior” work (which need not be). The dissent by Justice Sullivan offers a strong counterargument that is heavily discussed in class.