Case: 21-1704 Document: 39 Page: 1 Filed: 11/16/2021
NOTE: This disposition is nonprecedential.
United States Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit
______________________
7800 RICCHI LLC,
Plaintiff-Appellant
v.
UNITED STATES,
Defendant-Appellee
______________________
2021-1704
______________________
Appeal from the United States Court of Federal Claims
in No. 1:18-cv-01798-DAT, Judge David A. Tapp.
______________________
Decided: November 16, 2021
______________________
DREW WILLIAM MARROCCO, Dentons US LLP, Washing-
ton, DC, for plaintiff-appellant. Also represented by
SPENCER HAMILTON, Dallas, TX; JOHN DAVID BLAKLEY,
BLAKE BROWNSHADEL, Dunn Sheehan LLP, Dallas, TX.
JOSHUA A. MANDLEBAUM, Commercial Litigation
Branch, Civil Division, United States Department of Jus-
tice, Washington, DC, for defendant-appellee. Also repre-
sented by BRIAN M. BOYNTON, STEVEN JOHN GILLINGHAM,
MARTIN F. HOCKEY, JR.
______________________
Case: 21-1704 Document: 39 Page: 2 Filed: 11/16/2021
2 7800 RICCHI LLC v. US
Before NEWMAN, REYNA, and CHEN, Circuit Judges.
CHEN, Circuit Judge.
7800 Ricchi LLC (Ricchi) appeals the United States
Court of Federal Claims (Claims Court) entry of summary
judgment against its claim that the United States Postal
Service (USPS) breached the implied duty of good faith and
fair dealing in the lease contract between them. For the
reasons stated below, we affirm.
BACKGROUND
USPS leased space from Ricchi and its predecessor in
Dallas, Texas between 1993 and 2018. The last lease
agreement expired in November 2018. Before the expira-
tion of the latest lease, USPS experienced issues with the
building causing it to consider relocating to a different ex-
isting building or constructing a new building on USPS-
owned land.
Given the timeline for USPS to relocate, it sought a
twelve-month lease extension from Ricchi. Ricchi sought a
longer term, and the parties discussed the possibility of an
eighteen-month extension. The parties never formalized
an extension.
In May 2018, as the parties were negotiating a poten-
tial lease extension, an existing building that USPS was
interested in became available. USPS immediately began
negotiating to purchase the building and executed a pur-
chase and sale agreement on July 19, 2018.
In late July 2018, Ricchi learned that USPS was plan-
ning to relocate and accused USPS of relocating without
proper notice. USPS replied that it intended to honor the
lease through its expiration date of November 30, 2018.
The Postmaster General approved funding to buy
USPS’s desired building in August of 2018, and USPS
closed on the building in September of 2018. USPS
Case: 21-1704 Document: 39 Page: 3 Filed: 11/16/2021
7800 RICCHI LLC v. US 3
subsequently informed Ricchi that it would vacate by No-
vember 30, 2018—the end of the lease term.
Ricchi then brought a breach of contract action in the
Claims Court. The crux of its claims was that the parties
had entered into a new, binding agreement by virtue of
their discussions over the never-executed, short-term lease
extension. The Claims Court entered summary judgment
that the negotiations did not rise to an express or implied
contract; Ricchi does not challenge this ruling on appeal.
Ricchi also asserted a claim that USPS breached the
implied duty of good faith and fair dealing under the par-
ties’ existing contract. In response to USPS’s summary
judgment motion, Ricchi argued that USPS had a duty to
disclose to Ricchi USPS’s discussions with third parties
about relocating. Ricchi did not cite any provision of the
contract that formed a basis for any such alleged duty.
The Claims Court granted summary judgment as to
Ricchi’s implied duty claims for two reasons. See 7800 Ric-
chi, LLC v. United States, 152 Fed. Cl. 331, 339 (2021).
First, the Claims Court noted that the implied duty en-
sures that both parties receive the expected “fruits” of the
contract. As Ricchi’s “fruits” from the contract were rent
from USPS, and as USPS paid all rent it was obligated to
pay, Ricchi had thus received its “fruits.” See id. Second,
the Claims Court noted that “[t]he scope of the implied duty
of good faith must be tethered to and grounded in the terms
of the existing contract and do not attach to negotiations.”
See id. (cleaned up) (citing Dobyns v. United States, 915
F.3d 733, 740–41 (Fed. Cir. 2019)). But Ricchi cited no con-
tractual term to which the implied duty attaches, and no
new contract was formed.
Ricchi timely appealed. We have jurisdiction under 28
U.S.C. § 1295(a)(3).
Case: 21-1704 Document: 39 Page: 4 Filed: 11/16/2021
4 7800 RICCHI LLC v. US
DISCUSSION
Ricchi argues on appeal that the Claims Court erred
because the duty of good faith and fair dealing attaches to
the “Renewal Options” provision in the parties’ latest lease
agreement. See Appellant’s Br. 16. That “Renewal Op-
tions” provision, according to Ricchi, required USPS to dis-
close its discussions with third parties about potentially
relocating from Ricchi’s building. See id. at 17.
Notably, Ricchi does not fault the Claims Court’s anal-
ysis of the “Renewal Options” provision. Nor could it; the
Claims Court’s opinion does not address the provision be-
cause, as the Government correctly observes, Ricchi never
presented any argument based on that provision to the
Claims Court. Despite this failure, we address Ricchi’s
“Renewal Option” argument and affirm on the merits.
The Lease’s renewal option provides that “[t]he Lease
may be renewed at the option of the Postal Service [from
12/01/2018 until 11/30/2023] provided that notice is sent,
in writing, to the Landlord at least 270 days before the end
of the original lease term.” J.A. 16. It is undisputed that
USPS never sent any such notice, either before or after the
March 5, 2018 deadline.
Ricchi’s reliance on the Renewal Options provision is
problematic for two reasons. First, the provision expired
on March 6, 2018, before any of the conduct Ricchi com-
plains of—USPS’s failure to disclose its negotiations for a
new building in May through July of 2018. Thus, it cannot
provide the basis for any implied duty. Second, Ricchi’s
characterization of the parties’ short-term lease extension
negotiations as being grounded in the renewal provision
lack merit. The parties were clearly contemplating that
the extension would be a separate agreement. Neither
party referenced the expired Renewal Options provision
during negotiations, nor was USPS seeking a five-year ex-
tension as required by that provision. The Renewal Provi-
sion, therefore, “cannot be the basis of a claim for breach of
Case: 21-1704 Document: 39 Page: 5 Filed: 11/16/2021
7800 RICCHI LLC v. US 5
the implied duty of good faith and fair dealing.” Dobyns,
915 F.3d at 740–41.
CONCLUSION
We have considered Ricchi’s remaining arguments and
find them unpersuasive. For the reasons set forth above,
we affirm the Claims Court’s entry of summary judgment
against Ricchi on its breach of implied duty claim.
AFFIRMED