Name Redacted, ASBCA No. 61065

The Army awarded fixed-price construction Contract No. W91JA4-12-C-7131 to the appellant to perform building upgrades in Afghanistan; performance and multiple modifications occurred and government inspected and accepted final work on November 4, 2013.
The appellant submitted a final invoice marked "final payment" on November 4, 2013, containing a broad release of all claims with the "None" box checked for exceptions; the appellant’s CEO signed the release.
After clerical corrections, DFAS made final payment on December 30, 2013, and the contract completion was recorded on January 7, 2014.
The appellant later asserted it performed $142,000 in extra work it claimed was verbally directed and promised to be paid via modification; it filed an appeal in June 2016 and a certified claim in October 2016 for $144,000.
The government moved for summary judgment arguing the executed final release and final payment bar the post-release claim; the Board granted summary judgment for the government and denied the appeal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a post-payment claim for additional work is barred by a signed final release	Appellant: Release was signed in error or based on mistake; additional work was verbally directed and government intended to modify contract	Government: Appellant executed an unqualified final release and accepted final payment; no exception listed and government lacked notice of a reserved claim	The Board held the final release and final payment bar the claim; appellant’s unilateral mistake does not revoke the release
Whether the final-payment exception applies when the government had knowledge of a contractor’s claim	Appellant: Government knew of the extra work so claim should survive final payment	Government: Record does not show the contracting officer knew appellant was asserting a right to additional compensation	The Board held there is no evidence the government had actual knowledge, so the exception does not apply

J.G. Watts Construction, 161 Ct. Cl. 801 (1963) (discussing mutual-mistake exception to final-release bar)