signed by the Administrator. The Board has authority to determine appeals falling within the scope of its jurisdiction as fully and finally as might the Administrator.

(b) Under § 1209.102(b) of this chapter, the Board is granted the authority to issue its rules of procedure.

81241.12 Location and organization of the Board.

(a) The Board is located in Washington, D.C., and its mailing address is The Board of Contract Appeals, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, D.C. 20546.

(b) The Board consists of a Chairman and two other members, all of whom shall be attorneys at law duly licensed by any state or the District of Columbia, and who have significant experience in Government procurement law. In general, the appeals are assigned to a panel of at least two members of the Board. If a panel of two members is unable to agree upon a decision, the Chairman may assign a third member to consider the appeal. The Chairman is designated as Chief Administrative Judge and the other Board members are designated as Administrative Judges.

81241.13 Decisions on questions of law.

When an appeal is taken pursuant to a Disputes clause in a contract which limits appeals to disputes concerning questions of fact, the Board may, in its discretion, hear, consider, and decide all questions of law necessary for the complete adjudication of the issue. In the consideration of an appeal should it appear that a claim is involved which is not cognizable under the terms of the contract, the Board may make findings of fact with respect to such a claim without expressing an opinion on the question of liability. 81241.14 Board of Contract Appeals procedure.

(a) Rules. Appeals referred to the Board are handled in accordance with the rules of the Board.

(b) Administration and interpretation of rules. Emphasis is placed upon the sound administration of these rules in specific cases, because it is impracticable to articulate a rule to fit

every possible circumstance which may be encountered. These rules will be interpreted so as to secure a just and inexpensive determination of appeals without unnecessary delay.

(c) Preliminary procedures. Preliminary procedures are available to encourage full disclosure of relevant and material facts, and to discourage unwarranted surprise.

(d) Time, computation, and extensions. (1) All time limitations specified for various procedural actions are computed as maximums, and are not to be fully exhausted if the action described can be accomplished in a lesser period. These time limitations are similarly eligible for extension in appropriate circumstances, on good cause shown.

(2) Except as otherwise provided by law, in computing any period of time prescribed by these rules or by any order of the Board, the day of the event from which the designated period of time begins to run shall not be included, but the last day of the period shall be included unless it is a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday, in which event the period shall run to the end of the next business day.

(3) Requests for extensions of time from either party shall be mde in writing and stating good cause therefor.

PRELIMINARY PROCEDURES

§ 1241.101 Appeals, how taken.

Notice of an appeal must be in writing and the original, together with two copies, may be filed with the contracting officer from whose decision the appeal is taken. The notice of appeal must be mailed or otherwise filed within the time specified therefor in the contract or allowed by applicable provision of directive or law.

§ 1241.102 Notice of appeal, contents of.

A notice of appeal should indicate that an appeal is thereby intended and should identify the contract (by number), and the final decision of the contracting officer from which the appeal is taken. The notice of appeal should be signed personally by the appellant (the contractor making the apppeal), or by an officer of the appellant corporation or member of the ap

pellant firm, or by the contractor's duly authorized representative or attorney. The complaint referred to in § 1241.106 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.

§ 1241.103 Forwarding of appeals.

When a notice of appeal in any form has been received by the contracting officer, he shall endorse thereon the date of mailing (or date of receipt, if otherwise conveyed) and within 10 days shall forward said notice of appeal to the Board. Following receipt by the Board of the original notice of an appeal (whether through the contracting officer or otherwise), the contractor and contracting officer will be promptly advised of its receipt and the contractor will be furnished a copy of these rules.

§ 1241.104 Preparation, contents, organization, forwarding and status of appeal file.

(a) Duties of Contracting Officer. Within 30 days of receipt of an appeal, or advice that an appeal has been filed, the contracting officer shall assemble and transmit to the Board an appeal file consisting of all documents pertinent to the appeal, including:

(1) The decision and findings of fact from which appeal is taken;

(2) The contract including specifications and pertinent amendments, plans and drawings;

(3) All correspondence between the parties pertinent to the appeal, including the letter or letters of claim in response to which decision was issued;

(4) Transcripts of any testimony taken during the course of proceedings, and affidavits or statements of any witnesses on the matter in dispute made prior to the filing of the notice of appeal with the Board; and

(5) Any additional information considered pertinent.

Within the same time specified above, the contracting officer shall furnish the appellent a copy of each document he transmits to the Board, except those stated in § 1241.104(a)(2), as to which a list furnished appellant indicating specific contractual documents

transmitted will suffice, and those stated in § 1241.104(d).

(b) Duties of the appellant. Within 30 days after receipt of a copy of the appeal file assembled by the contracting officer, the appellant shall supplement the same by transmitting to the Board any documents not contained therein which he considers pertinent to the appeal, and furnishing two copies of such documents to the Government trial attorney.

(c) Organization of the appeal file. Documents in the appeal file may be originals or legible fascimile or authenticated copies thereof, and shall be arranged in chronological order where practicable, numbered sequentially, tabbed and indexed to identify the contents of the file.

(d) Lengthy documents. The Board may waive the requirement of furnishing to the other party copies of bulky, lengthy, or out-of-size documents in the appeal file when a party has shown that doing so would impose an undue burden. At the time a party files with the Board a document as to which such a waiver has been granted, he shall notify the other party that the same or a copy is available for inspection at the offices of the Board or of the party filing same.

(e) Status of documents in appeal file. Documents contained in the appeal file are considered, without further action by the parties, as part of the record upon which the Board will render its decision, unless a party objects to the consideration of a particular document in advance of hearing or of settling the record in the event there is no hearing on the appeal. If objection to a document is made, the Board will rule upon its admissibility into the record as evidence in accordance with §§ 1241.113 and 1241.120.

§ 1241.105 Dismissal for lack of jurisdiction.

Any motion addressed to the jurisdiction of the Board shall be promptly filed. Hearing on the motion shall be afforded on application of either party, unless the Board determines that its decision on the motion will be deferred pending hearing on both the merits and the motion. The Board

(a) Appellant. Within 30 days after receipt of notice of docketing of the appeal, the appellant shall file with the Board an original and two copies of a complaint setting forth simple, concise and direct statements of each of his claims, alleging the basis, with appropriate reference to contract provisions, for each claim, and the dollar amount claimed. This pleading shall fulfill the generally recognized requirements of a complaint, although no particular form or formality is required. Upon receipt thereof, the Board shall serve a copy upon the respondent. Should the complaint not be received within 30 days, appellant's claim and appeal may, if in the opinion of the Board the issues before the Board are sufficiently defined, be deemed to set forth his complaint and the respondent shall be so notified.

(b) Respondent. Within 30 days from receipt of said complaint, or the aforesaid notice from the Board, respondent shall prepare and file with the Board an original and two copies of an answer thereto, setting forth simple, concise, and direct statements of respondent's defenses to each claim asserted by appellant. This pleading shall fulfill the generally recognized requirements of an answer, and shall set forth any affirmative defenses or counter-claims as appropriate. Upon receipt thereof, the Board shall serve a copy upon appellant. Should the answer not be received within 30 days, the Board may, in its discretion, enter a general denial on behalf of the Government, and the appellant shall be so notified.

81241.107 Amendments of pleadings or record.

The Board upon its own initiative or upon application by a party may, in its discretion, order a party to make a more definite statement of the complaint or answer, or to reply to an answer. The Board may, in its discre

tion, and within the proper scope of the appeal, permit either party to amend his pleading upon conditions just to both parties. When issues within the proper scope of the appeal, but not raised by the pleadings or the documentation described in § 1241.104, are tried by express or implied consent of the parties, or by permission of the Board, they shall be treated in all respects as if they had been raised therein. In such instances, motions to amend the pleadings to conform to the proof may be entered, but are not required. If evidence is objected to at a hearing on the ground that it is not within the issues raised by the pleadings or the § 1241.104 documentation (which shall be deemed part of the pleadings for this purpose), it may be admitted within the proper scope of the appeal, provided, however, that the objecting party may be granted a continuance if necessary to enable him to meet such evidence.

§ 1241.108 Hearing election.

Upon receipt of respondent's answer or the notice referred to in the last sentence of § 1241.106(b), appellant shall advise whether he desires a hearing as

prescribed in §§ 1241.117 through 1241.125, or whether, in the alternative, he elects to submit his case on the record without a hearing, as prescribed in § 1241.111. In appropriate cases, the appellant shall also elect whether he desires the optional accelerated procedure prescribed in § 1241.112.

§ 1241.109 Prehearing briefs.

Based on an examination of the documentation described in § 1241.104, the pleadings, and a determination of whether the arguments and authorities addressed to the issues are adequately set forth therein, the Board may, in its discretion, require the parties to submit prehearing briefs in any case in which a hearing has been elected pursuant to § 1241.108. In the absence of a Board requirement therefor, either party may, in its discretion and upon appropriate and sufficient notice to the other party, furnish a prehearing brief to the Board. In any case where a prehearing brief is sub

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mitted, it shall be furnished so as to be received by the Board at least 15 days prior to the date set for hearing, and a copy shall simultaneously be furnished to the other party as previously arranged.

§ 1241.110 Prehearing or presubmission conference.

(a) Whether the case is to be submitted pursuant to § 1241.111, or heard pursuant to § 1241.117 through § 1241.125, the Board may upon its own initiative or upon the application of either party, call upon the parties to appear before an Administrative Judge for a conference to consider:

(1) The simplification or clarification of the issues;

(2) The possibility of obtaining stipulations, admissions, agreements on documents, understandings on matters already of record, or similar agreements which will avoid unnecessary proof;

(3) The limitation of the number of expert witnesses, or avoidance of similar cumulative evidence, if the case is to be heard;

(4) The possibility of agreement disposing of all or any of the issues in dispute; and

(5) Such other matters as may aid in the disposition of the appeal.

(b) Conference record. The results of the conference shall be reduced to writing by the Board member within 5 calendar days after the close of the conference. Copies shall be duly served on the parties who may, within 10 calendar days from receipt of the written record, file objection, comment, request for correction, or other motion pertaining to that record of prehearing conference. The record of prehearing conference, together with any objection, comment, request for correction, or other motion made by the parties shall become a part of the Board record.

8 1241.111 Submission without a hearing. Either party may elect to waive a hearing and to submit his case upon the record before the board, as settled pursuant to § 1241.113. Submission of a case without hearing does not relieve the parties from the necessity of proving the facts supporting their allega

tions or defenses. Affidavits, depositions, admissions, answers to interrogatories, and stipulations may be employed to supplement other documentary evidence in the Board record. The Board may permit such submission to be supplemented by oral argument (transcribed if requested), and by briefs arranged in accordance with § 1241.123.

8 1241.112 Optional accelerated procedure.

(a) In appeals involving $25,000 or less, either party may elect, in his notice of appeal, complaint, answer, or by separate correspondence or statement prior to commencement of hearing or settlement of the record, to have the appeal processed under a shortened and accelerated procedure. For application of this rule the amount in controversy will be determined by the sum of the amounts claimed by either party against the other in the appeal proceeding. If no specific amount of claim is stated, a case will be considered to fall within this rule if the sum of the amounts which each party represents in writing that it could recover as a result of a Board decision favorable to it does not exceed $25,000. Upon such election, a case shall then be processed under this rule unless the other party objects and shows good cause why the substantive nature of the dispute requires processing under the Board's regular procedures and the Board sustains such objection. In cases proceeding under this rule, parties are encouraged, to the extent possible consistent with adequate presentation of their factual and legal positions, to waive pleadings, discovery, and briefs.

(b) Written decision by the Board in cases proceeding under this rule normally will be short and contain summary findings of fact and conclusions only. The Board will endeavor to render such decisions within 30 days after the appeal is ready for decision. (c) Except as herein modified, these rules otherwise apply in all respects.

§ 1241.113 Settling the record.

(a) The record upon which the Board's decision will be rendered consists of the appeal file described in

§ 1241.104 and, to the extent the following items have been filed, pleadings, prehearing conference memoranda or orders, prehearing briefs, depositions or interrogatories received in evidence, admissions, stipulations, transcripts of conferences and hearings, hearing exhibits, posthearing briefs, and documents which the Board has specifically designated be made a part of the record. The record will at all reasonable times be available for inspection by the parties at the office of the Board.

(b) Except as the Board may otherwise order in its discretion, no proof shall be received in evidence after completion of an oral hearing or, in cases submitted on the record, after notification by the Board that the case is ready for decision.

(c) The weight to be attached to any evidence of record will rest within the sound discretion of the Board. The Board may in any case require either party, with appropriate notice to the other party, to submit addditional evidence on any matter relevant to the appeal.

whether the purpose of the deposition is discovery or for use as evidence.

(c) Orders on depositions. The time, place, and manner of taking depositions shall be as mutually agreed by the parties, or failing such agreement, governed by order of the Board.

(d) Use as evidence. No testimony taken by depositions shall be considered as part of the evidence in the hearing of an appeal unless and until such testimony is offered and received in evidence at such hearing. It will not ordinarily be received in evidence if the deponent is present and can testify personally at the hearing. In such instances, however, the deposition may be used to contradict or impeach the testimony of the witness given at the hearing. In cases submitted on the record, the Board may, in its discretion, receive depositions as evidence in supplementation of that record.

(e) Expenses. Each party shall bear its own expenses associated with the taking of any deposition.

§ 1241.115 Interrogatories to parties, admission of facts, and production and inspection of documents.

(a) Interrogatories to parties. After an appeal has been filed with the Board, a party may serve on the other party written interrogatories to be answered separately in writing, signed under oath and returned within 30 days. Upon timely objection by the party, the Board will determine the extent to which the interrogatories will be permitted.

(b) Admission of facts. After an appeal has been filed with the Board, a party may serve upon the other party a request for the admission of specified facts. Within 30 days after service, the party served shall answer each requested fact or file objections thereto. The factual propositions set out in the request shall be deemed admitted upon the failure of a party to respond to the request for admission.

(c) Production and inspection of documents. Upon motion of any party showing good cause therefor, and upon notice, the Board may order the other party to produce and permit the inspection and copying or photographing of any designated documents or