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DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW — NOT FINAL

BSA 77 P STREET LLC v. Hawkins, 983 A.2d 988 (2009)

Citation
BSA 77 P STREET LLC v. Hawkins, 983 A.2d 988 (2009)
Parent Document
BSA 77 P STREET LLC v. Hawkins, 983 A.2d 988 (2009)
Jurisdiction
DC (municipal)
Effective Date
2009-11-19

Other Sections in This Document (111)

Full Text

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Resolution of this issue involves general principles of contract interpretation. See Generally Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 202 (1981). The proper interpretation of a contract term is a question of law, which this court reviews de novo. See Fort Lincoln Civic Ass’n, Inc. v. Fort Lincoln New Town Corp., 944 A.2d 1055, 1064 (D.C.2008) (interpretation of the contract itself is a question of law for de novo review); see also Psaromatis v. English Holdings I, L.L.C., 944 A.2d 472, 481 (D.C.2008) (when language of a contract is unambiguous, its interpretation is a question of law requiring de novo review). In interpreting a contract’s terms, a court must determine “what a reasonable person in the position of the parties would have thought the disputed language meant.” 1010 Potomac Assocs. v. Grocery Mfrs., 485 A.2d 199, 205 (D.C.1984). Additionally, the contract “must be interpreted as a whole, giving a reasonable, lawful, and effective meaning to all its terms.” Id.