Contractors filing bid protests necessarily focus on the alleged errors in the procurement process, as establishing these errors is essential to prevailing in the protest. However, a recent—and rare—decision by the Federal...more
Often, a disappointed offeror has reason to believe that an awardee cannot meet the solicitation requirements. In these instances, the offeror may initiate a bid protest alleging noncompliance as a basis for contesting the...more
In a recent ruling, the Washington Supreme Court confirmed and clarified the ability of contractors to shield themselves from liability for construction claims arising out of defects in owner-provided plans and...more
A critical hurdle to filing a viable bid protest is to establish "standing." Standing, in the context of a bid protest, requires that the offeror bringing the protest be an "interested party," i.e., a prospective bidder whose...more
The 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes a significant change to how small businesses may establish past performance when bidding for prime contracts, greatly increasing the opportunity for small businesses...more
A decision just issued by the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA) offers guidance on how the federal government may respond to COVID-19 claims. In this case, there was an outbreak of Ebola at the project site, and the...more
This week, the President executed a new law, H.R. 6330 – the Small Business Runway Extension Act of 2018. The law, which took effect immediately, will significantly affect service contractors by modifying the basis by which...more
There is a tension in Government Contracting: How does a contractor adequately protect its rights given the day-to-day realities of working with its Government Customer? It is not uncommon for contracting officials to forgo...more
As part of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (“2019 NDAA”), Congress recently enacted significant changes to the process by which the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS”) operates as well...more
In another recently released bid protest sustained by the Court of Federal Claims, the Court addresses a protestor’s standing and an offeror’s ability to rely on the experience of its subcontractors in satisfying technical...more
One of the most common, and challenging, arguments made in a post-award bid protest is that the contracting officer’s evaluation was arbitrary and capricious. The challenge with this argument is overcoming the substantial...more
In yet another warning to contractors regarding the unforgiving bid protest timelines, the GAO recently issued a decision granting an agency’s request to dismiss a protest on the basis that the contractor failed to timely...more
The ASBCA recently issued a decision that provides contractors with relief and a viable option for progressing their claim when a contracting officer unreasonably delays issuance of a final decision. The critical triggering...more
Recent GAO decisions serve as important reminders that timely filing of a protest is strictly construed. As Department of Defense contractors and agencies are adopting the enhanced debriefing rules, there has been some...more
Earlier this week, the GAO announced the final version of its amended bid protest regulations, which take effect May 1, 2018. Significant changes to the regulations include
- the implementation of an electronic docketing...more
The traditional debriefing process, by which unsuccessful offerors can obtain information on the basis of the Government’s selection and contract award, was just improved to the benefit of contractors. Under the revised...more
It is no secret that the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) has been plagued by a significant backlog in processing incurred cost (electronically) proposals (“ICE proposals”). In 2011, there were approximately 31,000 ICE...more
As we near the end of the year and look back on 2017, both the number of data breaches and magnitude of these breaches stand out. There have been over forty very significant breaches of data stored on cloud computing systems...more
Recent case law affirms an Agency’s duty to prepare a complete and accurate Administrative Record (“AR”) when responding to a bid protest. It also reinforces the value and importance of careful and detailed analysis of the...more
One of, if not the most often-discussed issue facing Government contractors over the past few months has been the impending implementation of the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule.
In brief, this rule, which was to come...more
A recent Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) decision discusses the Severin doctrine and its impact on subcontractor pass-through claims, confirming that this defense to liability may only be used in very limited...more