Seaboard Lumber Co. v. United States

OPINION

SMITH, Chief Judge.

These consolidated cases, through plaintiffs’ motion to dismiss defendant’s counterclaims, call into question the constitutionality of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (CDA)1 as amended by the Federal Courts Improvement Act of 1982 (FCIA).2 The main issue presented in plaintiffs’ motion to dismiss is whether the Claims Court, an Article I tribunal, has jurisdiction to determine the defendant’s counterclaims3 which, according to plaintiffs, are common law breach of contract claims properly lodged only in an Article III tribunal. The plaintiffs’ second and related…