John Massman Contracting Co. v. United States

38 Cont. Cas. Fed. 76,515, 28 Fed. Cl. 235, 1993 U.S. Claims LEXIS 38, 1993 WL 150765
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedMay 7, 1993
DocketNo. 92-203C
StatusPublished

This text of 38 Cont. Cas. Fed. 76,515 (John Massman Contracting Co. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
John Massman Contracting Co. v. United States, 38 Cont. Cas. Fed. 76,515, 28 Fed. Cl. 235, 1993 U.S. Claims LEXIS 38, 1993 WL 150765 (uscfc 1993).

Opinion

ORDER

MOODY R. TIDWELL, III, Judge:

This case is before the court on defendant’s motion for partial dismissal and for partial summary judgment. For the reasons set forth below, the court grants in part and denies in part defendant’s motion.

FACTS 1

On December 12, 1984, Contract No. DACW38-85-C-0020 (the contract) was awarded to plaintiff John Massman Contracting Company (Massman) by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) in the amount of $8,202,980.00 for Lorran Lake Realignment, Avoyelles and Catahoula Parishes, Louisiana. Plaintiff St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company (St. Paul) is an insurance company which issued payment and performance bonds on the contract. Defendant was the obligee on the bonds, and Massman the principal. Under its payment bond, St. Paul made payments totalling over $2.5 million to Massman’s subcontractors for labor and materials furnished in prosecution of the contract.

The contract required the realignment of the Red River between Miles 34.4 and 37.0 by construction of a pilot channel and a system of revetments and dikes. In order to divert all flows down the pilot channel,, the contract required Massman to construct a closure dam across the old river [237]*237channel to elevation 60.5 NGVD.2 The closure dam was to be located at approximate river Mile 36.3 and was to be constructed of earthen fill material by land-based equipment.

Several contract clauses are implicated in the parties’ dispute. Contract Special Clause 13, ORDER OF WORK, (SC-13), provided:

Work on each structure or portion thereof shall begin at the upstream end and continue progressively downstream unless otherwise directed in writing by [the] Contracting Officer except as specified in [Clause] 6-3.1. With the exception of the pilot channel, work will not be permitted at river stages higher than 5-feet above the average low water plane for revetments and dikes placed in the river and a +5 ALWP water surface elevation in the trenchfill excavation without written permission of the Contracting Officer____

Contract Special Clause 17, DAMAGE TO WORK (MAR 1966 OCE), (SC-17), provided:

The responsibility for damage to any part of the permanent work shall be as set forth in the clause of the contract entitled “Permits and Responsibilities.” However, if, in the judgment of the Contracting Officer, any part of the permanent work performed by the Contractor is damaged by flood, or earthquake, which damage is not due to the failure of the Contractor to take reasonable precautions or to exercise sound engineering and construction practices in the conduct of the work, the Contractor will make the repairs as ordered by the Contracting Officer and full compensation for such repairs will be made at the applicable contract unit or lump sum prices as fixed and established in the contract____

Contract Clause 43, DISPUTES (1984 APR) FAR 52.233-1, provided:

(a) This contract is subject to the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (41 U.S.C. 601-613) (the Act).
(b) Except as provided in the Act, all disputes arising under or relating to this contract shall be resolved under this clause,
(h) The Contractor shall proceed diligently with performance of this contract, pending final resolution of any request for relief, claim, appeal, or action arising under the contract, and comply with any decision of the Contracting Officer.

Contract Clause 48, PERMITS AND RESPONSIBILITIES (1984 APR) FAR 52.-236-7, provided:

The contractor shall also be responsible for all materials delivered and work performed until completion and acceptance of the entire work, except for any completed unit of work which may have been accepted under the contract.

Contract Clause 64, DEFAULT (FIXED-PRICE CONSTRUCTION) (1984 APR) FAR 52.249-10, provided:

(a) If the Contractor refuses or fails to prosecute the work or any separable part, with the diligence that will insure its completion within the time specified in this contract including any extension, or fails to complete the work within this time, the Government may, by written notice to the Contractor, terminate the right to proceed with the work (or the separable part of the work) that has been delayed. In this event, the Government may take over the work and complete it by contract or otherwise, and may take possession of and use any materials, appliances, and plant on the work site necessary for completing the work. The Contractor and its sureties shall be liable for any damage to the Government resulting from the Contractor’s refusal or failure to complete the work within the specified time, whether or not the Contractor’s right to proceed with the work is terminated. This liability includes any increased costs incurred by the Government in completing the work.
[238]*238(b) The Contractor’s right to proceed shall not be terminated nor the [Contractor charged with damages under this clause, if—
(1) The delay in completing the work arises from unforeseeable causes beyond the control and without the fault or negligence of the Contractor____ [S]uch clauses include (i) acts of God ... (ii) acts of the Government in either its sovereign or contractual capacity ... (v) floods ... (x) unusually severe weather ...; and
(2) The Contractor, within 10 days from the beginning of any delay (unless extended by the Contracting Officer), notifies the Contracting Officer in writing of the causes of delay____

The contract originally contemplated completion within 650 calendar days, establishing a completion date of October 27, 1986. Excusable weather and/or river stage delays, caused by river stages higher than the maximum permissible under SC-13 for work to be performed, plus additional work and variations in estimated quantities, resulted in 1,044 days of time extension and a revised completion date of September 5, 1989.

During the period from August 15, 1988, through mid-December 1988, Massman partially constructed the closure dam to approximate elevation 42 NGVD. • Massman did not finish construction of the closure dam prior to the onset of wet weather in December 1988. When Massman ceased work, approximately 60,885 cubic yards of fill remained to complete the closure dam to 60.5 NGVD, the elevation required under the contract. During high water periods in 1989, the partially completed closure dam was overtopped and sustained damage. The overtopping damaged the uncompleted closure structure by washing out fill embankment which Massman had previously placed there. The upstream stone revetment was also damaged.

By letter dated June 30, 1989, Massman advised the Corps that it believed the damage to the partially completed closure dam was the result of a flood, and was therefore compensable under the contract’s Damage to Work clause, SC-17. However, the June 30 letter did not state that Mass-man had incurred any costs as a result of the flood, was not described as a claim, did not request a final decision of the contracting officer, and was not certified.

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Bluebook (online)
38 Cont. Cas. Fed. 76,515, 28 Fed. Cl. 235, 1993 U.S. Claims LEXIS 38, 1993 WL 150765, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/john-massman-contracting-co-v-united-states-uscfc-1993.