ASBCA Holds that Transmission Emails are "Part of the Same Transaction" as Mods for Plain Meaning Purposes
Client Alert | 1 min read | 05.24.19
Can contractors reserve rights in a transmission email while executing a contract modification that is silent on such reservation? The ASBCA recently affirmed again that yes, contractors can. In NMS Management, Inc., ASBCA No. 61519 (Apr. 11, 2019), a dispute over the “improper attempt at a partial exercise” of an option period, the ASBCA rejected the Government’s argument that NMS was strictly bound by the terms of a signed bilateral modification – viewed in isolation – because NMS’s accompanying transmission email stated that it was signing under protest. The ASBCA clarified the plain meaning rule by citing precedent that the “interpretation of a contract as a whole requires consideration of all documents that are part of the same transaction together.” The Board held that “the [transmission] email dispels any notion that Modification No. P00011 is the only writing to consider when evaluating the legal consequences of the modification.”
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Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.27.25
California Increases Antitrust Penalties
Earlier this month, California enacted Senate Bill 763 (“SB 763”). The legislation amends the state’s long-standing antitrust statute, the Cartwright Act, to increase both criminal and civil maximum penalties for corporations and individuals. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, whose office is responsible for enforcing the Cartwright Act and stands to benefit from any civil penalties recovered under the new law, sponsored the bill.
Client Alert | 3 min read | 10.24.25
Client Alert | 3 min read | 10.24.25
Client Alert | 6 min read | 10.24.25
Will Jarkesy Stop the IRS from Asserting Penalties Against Taxpayers?
