In general Discharge of Contract refers to the freedom of the parties to the contract, from their mutual obligations.
There are four methods by which a contract can be discharged or terminated:
Lawful discharge of contract by agreement
Discharge by performance
Discharge by frustration and
Unlawful discharge by breach.
Where at the outset, the parties to the contract have agreed upon the condition that the contract would stand terminated on the expiration of a given time, the contract is said to be discharged out of the original agreement. Discharge of Contract may take place when both parties have performed their obligations placed upon them by the contract. In some cases, it is impossible to perform an agreement at the outset and is void. However, there are some contracts which are possible to be performed when they are made but subsequently, it becomes impossible to execute them in whole or in part which are then referred to as frustrated. It would not be a frustration if the contract has been made impossible to perform by any voluntary act of the parties to the contract. A contract is said to be discharged by breach when a party to it violates one or more terms of the contract and fails to discharge it lawfully, e.g., where a seller fails to deliver the goods by the appointed time or where although, delivered, they are not up to the quality or quantity. In order to constitute a breach of contract, the breach must a vital part of the contract.
