Northwestern Bag Corp. v. United States

619 F.2d 896, 27 Cont. Cas. Fed. 80,355, 223 Ct. Cl. 333, 1980 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 127
United States Court of Claims·Decided April 16, 1980·No. No. 61-79·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

KASHIWA, Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

This is an action seeking Wunderlich Act, 41 U.S.C. §§ 321, 322 (1976), review of a decision of the Corps of Engineers Board of Contract Appeals (the "Board”). For the reasons set out below, we uphold the Board’s decision in its entirety.

Plaintiff is in the business of selling sandbags. On February 14, 1977, an employee of the Army Corps of Engineers (the "Corps”) telephoned Mr. Irwin Jacobs, Vice President of plaintiff, and placed an oral order for 10,000,000 sandbags. On February 15, 1977, a Mr. Cauble, Chief of the Procurement and Supply Division of the Saint Louis District of the Corps, telephoned Jacobs and informed him that the employee who contacted him on the previous day did not have the authority to order sandbags, that the oral order was not valid, and that plaintiff therefore did not have a contract to supply 10,000,000 sandbags. Upon being informed that plaintiff had, pursuant to this order, already shipped 2,600,000 of the bags, Cauble agreed to purchase this number of bags as a negotiated procurement. Cauble also told Jacobs that the other 7,400,000 sandbags (the balance of the bags the Corps would have received from plaintiff had the 10,000,000 bag order been valid) would be obtained by the Corps through an advertised procurement. Jacobs at that point asked Cauble what type of sandbag would be covered by this advertised procurement. Cauble had Jacobs describe the sandbags plaintiff was furnishing under the 2,600,000 bag contract. Jacobs described them as size 14 1/2 by 33 inches, 10-ounce treated burlap bags with ties, 500 to a bale, approximate weight 200 pounds per bale. Cauble then informed Jacobs that this was the type of sandbag which would be obtained under the advertised procurement. In testifying before the Board, Cauble’s account of this conversation included his telling Jacobs that in addition to the bags meeting this description, plaintiff [336] would get a package in the mail with the complete and total description of the type of bag to be obtained.

On February 23,1977, the Corps issued Invitation for Bid (IFB) No. DACW43-77-B-0032 as an advertised procurement for 7,400,000 sandbags. The bid sheet, contained within the IFB, required that these bags would have to comply with Military Specification MIL-B-12233D. In addition, the IFB also included, among other provisions, Article 23(a) of the Solicitation Instructions and Conditions, and General Provision No. 47.1 These two provisions considered together imposed the requirement that only "new” sandbags could be furnished and defined "new” sandbags as those which are "not used, or reconditioned, and not of such age or so deteriorated as to impair their usefulness or safety.”

Plaintiff was the low bidder under this IFB. However, prior to awarding the contract, Cauble and a number of other Corps employees visited Harper-Crawford Company in Charlotte, North Carolina. Harper-Crawford held the subcontract to supply to plaintiff the sandbags which plaintiff planned to sell to the Corps if awarded the 7,400,000 bag contract. Harper-Crawford produces new sandbags as well as reworking and' resewing bags which were previously manufactured. After inspecting the reworked bags, Cauble asked an employee of Harper-Crawford if the reworked bags were what plaintiff planned on furnishing to the Corps if plaintiff was awarded the contract. This employee replied in the affirmative.

Subsequent to the trip to Harper-Crawford, Cauble contacted Jacobs and informed him that new bags were to be furnished under this contract and that reworked bags would not be accepted. Cauble also asked for written confirmation that plaintiff would furnish new sandbags if [337] awarded the contract. Jacobs replied with the following telegram: "RE YOUR SOLICITATION #DACW43-77-B-0032 THIS WIRE CONFIRMS THAT THE SANDBAGS THAT WE BID PER THAT SOLICITATION NUMBER ARE NEW BURLAP BAGS.” Plaintiff also submitted samples of sandbags which were tested and met the requirements of Military Specification MIL-B-12233D.

Subsequent to Jacobs sending the telegram and the testing of the samples, plaintiff was awarded the contract to sell 7,400,000 sandbags to the Corps. As sandbags were shipped, they were inspected upon receipt by the Corps. The Corps determined that the first shipment of bags was not "new” within the meaning of Article 23(a) and General Provision No. 47 and also failed to comply with MIL-B-12233D. This shipment was rejected by the Corps. Jacobs later inspected these rejected bags and agreed that they were not acceptable. Some of the bags in subsequent shipments also were not "new” and also failed to meet MIL-B-12233D.

On June 27, 1977, the Contracting Officer terminated the contract for default of plaintiff. The specific grounds were failure of the bags to meet MIL-B-12233D and to be "new.” Plaintiff appealed to the Board the correctness of the termination for default.

Plaintiff made a number of arguments before the Board. Plaintiff contended a valid contract for 10,000,000 bags was created on February 14,1977. Plaintiff also argued that the Corps employee who contacted plaintiff on February 14, 1977, did have the authority to purchase sandbags and that Cauble misrepresented the facts when he, on February 15, 1977, told Jacobs that such employee did not have procurement authority. With regard to the 7,400,000 bag contract, plaintiff admitted that its bags failed to meet MIL-B-12233D and were not "new” as defined in Article 23(a) and General Provision No. 47. However, plaintiff argued the Corps was estopped from demanding compliance with MIL-B-12233D and had waived any objections to the bags’ failure to be "new.” Plaintiff, therefore, contended that it was not in default under the contract, and the termination, since not for plaintiffs default, was really for the convenience of the Corps.

[338] The Board decided (1) there was never a valid 10,000,000 bag contract, (2) Cauble had not misrepresented the facts to plaintiff and (3) concerning the 7,400,000 bag contract, the Corps was not estopped from demanding compliance with MIL-B-12233D and had not waived any objections to the bags not being "new.” The Board, therefore, held the termination for default was proper.

In its complaint filed with this court, plaintiff challenged the finality and conclusiveness of the entire Board decision. Plaintiff claimed (1) there was a valid 10,000,000 bag contract which had been breached by the Corps, (2) Cauble had on February 15, 1977, misrepresented the true facts so as to induce plaintiff to give up its rights under the 10,000,000 bag contract and enter into the 7,400,000 bag contract and (3) since the Corps was estopped from demanding compliance with MIL-B-12233D and had waived its right to object to the failure of the bags to be "new,” the termination of the 7,400,000 bag contract was for the convenience of the Corps.

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Northwestern Bag Corp. v. United States, 619 F.2d 896, 27 Cont. Cas. Fed. 80,355, 223 Ct. Cl. 333, 1980 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 127 (cc 1980).

619 F.2d 896 (Northwestern Bag Corp. v. United States) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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