Break Fee

Break Fee

1. In a contract between two parties, an amount of money one party may pay the other in order to agree to dissolve the contract. In many cases, the amount of the break fee is contained in the contract itself. It may diminish over time, depending on the nature of the contract. Break fees are common in leases.

2. In mergers and acquisitions, a fee the target pays to the acquirer in case a deal fails before completion. Theoretically, this is done to reimburse the acquirer for due diligence expenses, but, in practice, it is often used to attempt to restore good relations between the two companies.