Little v. United States

152 F. Supp. 84, 138 Ct. Cl. 773, 1957 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 84
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedJune 5, 1957
DocketNo. 565-53
StatusPublished
Cited by40 cases

This text of 152 F. Supp. 84 (Little v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Little v. United States, 152 F. Supp. 84, 138 Ct. Cl. 773, 1957 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 84 (cc 1957).

Opinions

Jones, Chief Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

This suit is based upon a contract between the plaintiff and the Veterans Administration.

The plaintiff, doing business as the Southern School of Insurance in Jackson, Tennessee, engaged in the education and training of veterans under Public Law 346, 78th Congress, 58 Stat. 287, from October. 15,1947, to August 4,1949.

Plaintiff received authority to train Public Law 346 veterans in a course entitled “Insurance Training” from the Department of Education of the State of Tennessee and began the training and education on October 15, 1947. From that date through June 30, 1948, plaintiff’s school furnished training and education without a formal contract with the defendant. From July 1,1948, through December 31,1948, the school operated under Contract V3020V-43 which plaintiff had entered into with the Veterans Administration. On or about January 1, 1949, the school commenced operating under Contract V3020V-241 which was to cover the period from January 1,1949, through December 31,1949.

Contract V3020V-241 provided, inter alia, that the Southern School of Insurance would provide certain courses of instruction to qualified veterans at specified prices, and that the school would furnish to the veterans the books, supplies, and equipment necessary to complete the courses. It further provided that the Veterans Administration would pay the school for tuition fees and other services and would compensate the school for books, supplies, and equipment furnished the veterans at cost to the school. The contract also provided that the school would maintain records of attendance, deportment, and progress of veterans in training under the contract.

Under Public Law 346 and regulations promulgated pursuant thereto the approval or disapproval of institutions for the education and training of eligible veterans was the responsibility of the state in which the particular school [775]*775operated. The Veterans Administration under its regulations was required to present any information it possessed with respect to inadequacies of any school approved for the training of veterans pursuant to Public Law 346, to the appropriate state approving agency.

After an investigation, the Department of Education of the State of Tennessee, by letter dated April 14,1949, notified plaintiff that the school’s approval for veteran training was to be withdrawn effective as of the close of business on April 30, 1949, because the school did not meet the State’s minimum requirements for the training of veterans under Public Law 346. Upon receiving this letter the plaintiff personally called on the Commissioner of Education to discuss the reasons for the withdrawal of approval and for the purpose of obtaining a revocation of the withdrawal order. As a result of this conference, the Commissioner of Education agreed to postpone the effective date of the withdrawal order and plaintiff was advised that authorization for continued operation of his school for the training of veterans would depend upon the results of another Veterans Administration inspection of the school, which plaintiff had requested. The Veterans Administration was notified of this decision by letter dated April 19, 1949, and plaintiff was sent a copy of the letter.

After learning that continued approval of the school would depend upon the outcome of a further inspection of the school, plaintiff destroyed the school’s attendance records relating to veterans who were in training prior to January 3, 1949.

Pursuant to its regulations, the Veterans Administration made a spot check of the school’s available records on May 6 and 9,1949, to determine whether there had been compliance with the requirements of the state agency and with the terms of the contract. The spot check, confined to records beginning January 3,1949, because the prior records had been destroyed, revealed irregularities on the part of the plaintiff’s school with respect to records and billings for books and supplies. As a result, further payments were suspended by the Veterans Administration, effective April 30, 1949, pending a more complete audit.

[776]*776On July 20,1949, an audit team from the Veterans Administration conducted an audit and subsequently prepared an audit report on the available attendance records and other records pertaining to 52 veterans. According to the audit report the attendance records showed almost perfect attendance by all students, but contained many erasures and alterations, and students were marked present on days when they had been originally marked A, S, or L, which, according to the symbols used by the instructors, stood for absent, sick, or late. The report further indicated that the practice of alteration was widespread and that in the case of one student, there were nineteen days on which erasures and alterations were made showing that the student was present on those days when previously he had been marked absent. The audit report also revealed the existence of the following types of irregularities: (1) entries had been made on school records to show that students commenced training at a date earlier than the actual date of training; (2) some students were granted leave from classes and marked P for present; (3) students were marked present on the attendance records when (heir files contained a doctor’s certificate stating that they were ill and unable to attend classes; (4) instructors marked students present on days when such students were actually absent; (5) certain students were reported as having made up classes on Saturdays when in fact such students never attended Saturday make-up classes, and (6) students signed receipts for books and supplies before receiving them and the Veterans Administration was billed for them before they were issued and, in some instances, for items never issued to students. The evidence submitted in this case substantiates most of the findings in the audit report and reveals other irregularities not specifically noted in the audit report.

The audit report was sent to the Department of Education of the State of Tennessee for its information in accordance with Veterans Administration regulations. After the receipt of the report the Tennessee Department of Education made an investigation of conditions existing at plaintiff’s school. Subsequent to its investigation, the Tennessee Department of Education issued an order removing the plaintiff’s school from the State’s list of schools approved for the [777]*777training of veterans under Public Law 346, effective August 3,1949.

Upon being notified that approval of his school had been withdrawn, plaintiff, on August 4, 1949, closed the school and discontinued the training of veterans.

Upon learning that plaintiff had closed his school, the Veterans Administration cancelled Contract V3020V-241 effective August 5,1949, by registered letter dated August 9, 1949.

Count One of plaintiff’s petition is a claim for tuition, books, and supplies for the period from May 1 to August 4, 1949. The school was in operation during that period and plaintiff has not been paid for the services rendered. Count Two of the petition is a claim for damages allegedly resulting from the failure of the defendant to give the plaintiff 60-day notice of termination of Contract V3020V-241 in accordance with the provisions of the contract. Count Three is a claim for damages allegedly resulting from defendant’s revocation of the contract.1

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
152 F. Supp. 84, 138 Ct. Cl. 773, 1957 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 84, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/little-v-united-states-cc-1957.