Alternative Relief

Remedies sought in a lawsuit in various forms or in the alternative, such as a demand for specific performance of a contract or monetary damages to compensate for the failure to perform the obligation, or both.

Modern rules governing pleading in courts now specifically permit a party to demand relief in the alternative. This eliminates the harsh consequences of the rule of common-law pleading that required a party to make one demand for one type of relief and to lose the case if a different remedy were more appropriate. Today, a party can ask for alternative forms of relief and recover what is later proved to be most appropriate at trial.