(a) The authority and responsibility to settle contract disputes docketed with the ASBCA remains with the contracting officer, subject to (b) and the following:
(1) The contracting officer must advise the Chief Trial Attorney of all offers of settlement from a contractor, whether made by the contractor or through the contractor’s attorney.
(2) The contracting officer must consult with the Chief Trial Attorney before accepting a contractor’s offer of settlement and before making a settlement offer to the contractor.
(b) The Chief Trial Attorney has all necessary authority to conclude settlement agreements with the concurrence of the contracting officer, the reviewing official, or the DASA (P). He/she must notify the appropriate Army Command (ACOM) legal office/Staff Judge Advocate (SJA) of any disagreement regarding the settlement of a case before raising the matter to the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Acquisition, Logistics and Technology) (ASA(AL&T)).
(1) An agreement on matters for which there is no substantial controversy and which will not have the effect of disposing of an appeal may be entered into by the Chief Trial Attorney or by an individual trial attorney; provided that, in the case of a pre-hearing written stipulation or agreement, authority shall have been granted the individual trial attorney in advance by the Chief Trial Attorney.
(2) In appropriate cases, such as those where time-consuming delays would occur by returning the appeal to the contracting officer, the Chief Trial Attorney (or an individual trial attorney acting with the prior approval of the Chief Trial Attorney) may enter into an agreement with an appellant which will have the effect of disposing of an appeal after concurrence has been obtained from a representative of the HCA. Such agreement may then become the basis of an ASBCA decision disposing of the appeal.
