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DFARS

DFARS

Change Number: DFARS Change 03/26/2024
Effective Date: 03/26/2024

Rule 1. Appeals

Rule 1. Appeals

(a) Taking an Appeal—For appeals subject to the Contract Disputes Act, notice of an appeal shall be in writing and mailed or otherwise furnished to the Board within 90 days from the date of receipt of a contracting officer’s decision. The appellant (contractor) should also furnish a copy of the notice of appeal to the contracting officer. For appeals not subject to the Contract Disputes Act, the contractor should refer to the Disputes clause in its contract for the time period in which it must file a notice of appeal.

(1) Where the contractor has submitted a claim of $100,000 or less to the contracting officer and has requested a written decision within 60 days from receipt of the request, and the contracting officer has not provided a decision within that period, or where such a contractor request has not been made and the contracting officer has not issued a decision within a reasonable time, the contractor may file a notice of appeal as provided in paragraph (a) of this Rule, citing the failure of the contracting officer to issue a decision.

(2) Where the contractor has submitted a properly certified claim over $100,000 to the contracting officer or has submitted a claim that involves no monetary amount, and the contracting officer, within 60 days of receipt of the claim, fails to issue a decision or fails to provide the contractor with a reasonable date by which a decision will be issued, and the contracting officer has failed to issue a decision within a reasonable time, the contractor may file a notice of appeal as provided in paragraph (a) of this Rule, citing the failure of the contracting officer to issue a decision.

(3) A reasonable time shall be determined by taking into account such factors as the size and complexity of the claim and the adequacy of the information provided by the contractor to support the claim.

(4) Where an appeal is before the Board pursuant to paragraph (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this Rule, the Board may, at its option, stay further proceedings pending issuance of a final decision by the contracting officer within such period of time as is determined by the Board.

(5) In lieu of filing a notice of appeal under paragraph (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this Rule, the contractor may petition the Board to direct the contracting officer to issue a decision in a specified period of time as determined by the Board.

(b) Contents of Notice of Appeal—A notice of appeal shall indicate that an appeal is being taken and should identify the contract by number, the department and/or agency involved in the dispute, the decision from which the appeal is taken, and the amount in dispute, if any. A copy of the contracting officer’s final decision, if any, should be attached to the notice of appeal. The notice of appeal should be signed by the appellant or by the appellant’s duly authorized representative or attorney. The complaint referred to in Rule 6 may be filed with the notice of appeal, or the appellant may designate the notice of appeal as a complaint, if it otherwise fulfills the requirements of a complaint.

(c) Docketing of Appeal—When a notice of appeal has been received by the Board, it will be docketed. The Board will provide a written notice of docketing to the appellant and to the Government.

DFARS Parts

DFARS Appendix