Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Re: where to file

I'm afraid I must disagree with Mr. Tenner. If the company is not qualified to do business in California that means only that the company's rights will be impaired. It has no bearing on your rights.

By engaging in commerce involving California, the company has subjected itself to the jurisdiction of California courts.

It would not make sense for the law to grant more protection to a company which disobeys legal requirements than to one which obeys them, but that is what Mr. Tenner's answer implies. Generally speaking, if an out-of-state defendant causes harm in California, that defendant can be sued here.

Re: where to file

Your message doesn't say where you are located, though I will presume you are in California. You may sue at your local courthouse, unless you signed a contract that requires you to sue elsewhere. A company that purchases an advertisement in a Los Angeles newspaper has done enough to subject itself to jurisdiction in California courts.

Your damages will be the difference between what you would have spent under the original deal and what you actually ended up spending. If you were originally promised a $400 deal and ended up paying someone else $1000 for a comparable trip, then your damages are $600. If you actually paid money to the first company before they breached, then you can recover what you gave them along with the added costs you incurred.

You cannot recover the entire cost of the trip because that would give you the trip for free, which is a better deal than what you had originally agreed to. The damages are supposed to make you whole, not give you a windfall.