PSC Asks Supreme Court to Hear Battlefield Contracting Case
Arlington, Va., February 11, 2014—The Professional Services
Council yesterday filed a “friend of the court” (amicus) brief
in the United States Supreme Court recommending that the court
hear an appeal involving KBR.  Last August, the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that a suit against KBR over
federal contract work could go forward despite prohibitions on
suing the government and contractors performing government work.
In its brief, PSC addresses how a specific Federal Acquisition
Regulation clause, FAR 52.228-7 titled “Insurance – Liability to
Third Persons,” included in those battlefield cost-reimbursement
contracts, controls the relationship between the government and
its prime contractors and between the prime contractor and third
parties.  “The FAR clause enshrines the well-settled position
that the government is generally liable for injuries or death
arising out of the prime contractor’s performance of the cost-
reimbursement