---
title: "Unjust Enrichment (Remedies)"
type: Legal Term
source: https://casebriefly.com/legal-terms/unjust-enrichment-remedies
---

# Unjust Enrichment (Remedies)

Unjust enrichment as a remedial theory allows a plaintiff to recover the value of a benefit conferred on the defendant when it would be inequitable for the defendant to retain that benefit without payment. The plaintiff must establish three elements: (1) the plaintiff conferred a benefit on the defendant, (2) the defendant appreciated or had knowledge of the benefit, and (3) the defendant's retention of the benefit without compensation would be unjust. Unjust enrichment operates as the substantive basis for restitutionary remedies, including quasi-contract, constructive trust, and equitable lien, and it is available even in the absence of a valid contract between the parties. The measure of recovery is typically the reasonable value of the benefit to the defendant, not the cost to the plaintiff of providing it.

## Related Terms

- unjust-enrichment
- quasi-contract-remedies
- restitution-damages
- constructive-trust

## Related Cases

- sullivan-v-oconnor
- jacob-youngs-v-kent

## Example

When a landscaper mistakenly improved the wrong property, building a $20,000 retaining wall on a neighbor's lot, the court allowed recovery under unjust enrichment for the reasonable value of the improvement to the neighbor's land.

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Source: [Unjust Enrichment (Remedies) — CaseBriefly](https://casebriefly.com/legal-terms/unjust-enrichment-remedies)