Title 28 — Judiciary and Judicial ProcedureRelease 119-73
§520 Transmission of petitions in United States Court of Federal Claims or in United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; statement furnished by departments
Title 28 › Part PART II— - DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE › Chapter CHAPTER 31— - THE ATTORNEY GENERAL › § 520
Summary
Requires the Attorney General to send a printed copy of the lawsuit petition to the executive or military department, bureau, or officer involved when the United States is sued in the Court of Federal Claims or the Federal Circuit over a contract, agreement, transaction, or a matter the agency already decided. The agency must, within a reasonable time, give the Attorney General a written report of all facts, information, and evidence it has and say where official papers are kept. If the agency already decided the matter, it must explain its reasons, cite any Act of Congress relied on, note prior agency interpretations and attach any opinions, and quote any relevant regulation. One report may be used for several similar cases.
Full Legal Text
Title 28, §520
Judiciary and Judicial Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)In suits against the United States in the United States Court of Federal Claims or in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit founded on a contract, agreement, or transaction with an executive department or military department, or a bureau, officer, or agent thereof, or when the matter or thing on which the claim is based has been passed on and decided by an executive department, military department, bureau, or officer authorized to adjust it, the Attorney General shall send to the department, bureau, or officer a printed copy of the petition filed by the claimant, with a request that the department, bureau, or officer furnish to the Attorney General all facts, circumstances, and evidence concerning the claim in the possession or knowledge of the department, bureau, or officer.
(b)Within a reasonable time after receipt of the request from the Attorney General, the executive department, military department, bureau, or officer shall furnish the Attorney General with a written statement of all facts, information, and proofs. The statement shall contain a reference to or description of all official documents and papers, if any, as may furnish proof of facts referred to in it, or may be necessary and proper for the defense of the United States against the claim, mentioning the department, office, or place where the same is kept or may be secured. If the claim has been passed on and decided by the department, bureau, or officer, the statement shall briefly state the reasons and principles on which the decision was based. When the decision was founded on an Act of Congress it shall be cited specifically, and if any previous interpretation or construction has been given to the Act, section, or clause by the department, bureau, or officer, it shall be set forth briefly in the statement and a copy of the opinion filed, if any, attached to it. When a decision in the case has been based on a regulation of a department or when a regulation has, in the opinion of the department, bureau, or officer sending the statement, any bearing on the claim, it shall be distinctly quoted at length in the statement. When more than one case or class of cases is pending, the defense of which rests on the same facts, circumstances, and proofs, the department, bureau, or officer may certify and send one statement and it shall be held to apply to all cases as if made out, certified, and sent in each case respectively.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Historical and Revision Notes
DerivationU.S. CodeRevised Statutes andStatutes at Large 5 U.S.C. 91.R.S. § 188. The section is reorganized and restated for clarity. In subsection (a), the word “concerning” is substituted for “touching”. In subsection (b), the words “without delay” are omitted as unnecessary in view of the requirement that the statement be furnished “Within a reasonable time”. The word “briefly” is substituted for “succinctly”. The words “in suit” are omitted as unnecessary. The words “executive department” are substituted for “department” because “department” as used in R.S. § 188 meant “executive department”. (See R.S. § 159.) The words “military department” are inserted to preserve the application of the source law. Before enactment of the National Security Act
Amendments
of 1949 (63 Stat. 578), the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of the Air Force were Executive departments. The National Security Act
Amendments
of 1949 established the Department of Defense as an Executive Department including the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of the Air Force as military departments, not as Executive departments. However, the source law for this section, which was in effect in 1949, remained applicable to the Secretaries of the military departments by virtue of section 12(g) of the National Security Act
Amendments
of 1949 (63 Stat. 591), which is set out in the reviser’s note for section 301 of title 5, United States Code.
Editorial Notes
Amendments
1992—Pub. L. 102–572 substituted “United States Court of Federal Claims” for “United States Claims Court” in section catchline and subsec. (a). 1982—Pub. L. 97–164, § 118(a)(2), substituted “United States Claims Court or in United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit” for “Court of Claims” in section catchline. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 97–164, § 118(a)(1), substituted “United States Claims Court or in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit” for “Court of Claims”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 1992 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 102–572 effective Oct. 29, 1992, see section 911 of Pub. L. 102–572, set out as a note under section 171 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1982 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 97–164 effective Oct. 1, 1982, see section 402 of Pub. L. 97–164, set out as a note under section 171 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
28 U.S.C. § 520
Title 28 — Judiciary and Judicial Procedure
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73