Have you ever played hide and seek? If you are the seeker, do you win the game when you find the hidden person? Yes, of course!
Unless, you’re a government contractor seeking “hidden” requirements that seem to pop-up around every corner. Just when it seems you’ve found the answer, requirement, specification, or drawing detail, the government replies that you missed something and should have kept seeking.
Do not fear, you may yet win this round. Give notice, track your costs, and organize the documents supporting your position. Later you may submit a claim.
Under a recent design-build project for the U.S. Navy, the contractor submitted claims for extra work on the construction of a dormitory at Aviano Air Base in Italy. Although the ASBCA denied the appeal because the contractor didn’t consider the many requirements that were incorporated into the contract by reference (not verbatim), the case provides a good lesson for contractor’s –
When it seems you’ve found the answer, keep looking to ensure the answer doesn’t change.
Appeals of A.T.I. Tacose S.C.a R.L., ASBCA Nos. 59157 and 59200 (Jan. 4, 2017).
Roads & Bridges
Where Does the Buck Stop?
Jon is a monthly contributor to Roads & Bridges magazine. He has been writing the law section for the magazine since January 2020. The link below will take you directly to the Roads & Bridges […]
Pay-If-Paid Unenforceable in Virginia Starting Jan. 1, 2023
As of Jan. 1, 2023, pay-if-paid clauses are unenforceable, regardless of whether a surety/payment bond claim is involved. This is only for subcontracts created on/after 1/1/23.
Also for subcontracts created on/after 1/1/23, the prime must specifically […]
How Short is Too Short
A limitations period is too short when it’s unreasonably short.
Construction Contracting Without Relief Clauses During COVID-19
What to do if your contract lacks the parts to handle COVID-19? Considerations for creating new contracts during COVID-19.
Your Contract Can Handle COVID-19
Uncertainty and risk are not new or novel to contractors. Contracts reduce uncertainty and share the risk of doing or providing something. COVID-19 may have contributed to, but it has not single-handedly created, uncertainty and risk.
Contractors Can Use RFI to Notify the Government
The Board (and the government) should not elevate form over substance in evaluating the sufficiency of a contractor’s notice.
Taxes Due!
It’s tax season again, so it’s time to pay the piper.
Contractor Wins when Government Reconsiders Accord
Ever had buyer’s remorse or second-guessed a decision? When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers did that, a Contractor won its claim for time and money.
On a flood control project near Nogales, Arizona, severe flooding […]
Claim Certified with Digital Signature Deemed OK
The law is not a trend-setter. It doesn’t readily change or adapt to tech. So, a commonplace practice in business became a dispute when a claimant digitally certified a claim under the Contract Disputes Act.
Jonathan J. Straw
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