With just a week to go in FY24, federal agencies are rushing to spend those "use it or lose it" dollars. And while there are a number of reasons that support filing a bid protest when you're an unsuccessful offeror – this...more
In a previous article, we analyzed what made protests successful at the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) in Fiscal Year 2023 (“FY23”). Now, we want to share some insights we gained while conducting the same analysis...more
Since our last Bid Protest Hub article in November, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) has published 37 bid protest decisions, two of which have resulted in decisions sustaining the protester’s challenge. As we...more
On December 20, 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) denied an unsuccessful bidder’s protest, arguing, among other things, that the procurement was tainted by an appearance of impropriety after the agency...more
Contractors know when they bid a public job that it’s the lowest and best bidder that will ultimately come out on top. Contractors and public bodies also know that when a public body rejects the lowest bid, it needs to...more
Welcome to Jenner & Block’s Government Contracts Legal Round‑Up, a biweekly update on important government contracts developments. This update offers brief summaries of key developments for government contracts legal,...more
Most of the time the low bidder will win a government contract. But not always. Sometimes a federal agency will make an award on a best-value trade-off basis. This process can be used “when it may be in the best interest of...more
Over the last few years, the government has shifted away from lowest price technically acceptable valuations placing a larger importance on past performance. The past performance requirement can sometimes create obstacles for...more
In 2022, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. Government Accountability Office issued six bid protest decisions worthy of particular note. - ASRC Federal Data Solutions LLC - ESimplicity Inc. v. U.S. -...more
The number of bid protest filings peaks in October as a result of increased government spending at the end of the government’s fiscal year — which is the 12-month period beginning on October 1 and ending on September 30...more
As a general matter, an agency should reject a bid out of hand if it is deemed defective due to problems with bidder responsiveness. However, flawed bids determined on account of issues with bidder responsibility can be...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, in SEKRI, Inc. v. United States, recently added to the growing body of case law that has declined to extend the scope of the Blue & Gold waiver rule...more
In a post earlier this year, I discussed a significant split between the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO). GAO has long held that email bid submissions, which do not arrive on time...more
An interesting new bid protest decision from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims articulates a rule for pre-award key personnel unavailability that is very different from the one employed by the U.S. Government Accountability...more
In NIKA Technologies v. U.S., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently reversed the holding of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims regarding when the protest-filing clock starts running for a stay of contract...more
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently issued to Congress its annual bid protest report. As discussed below, this year's report is noteworthy for multiple reasons, including that it shows that protesters...more
Florida’s First District Court of Appeals recently held in State of Fla., Agency for Health Care Administration v. Best Care Assurance, LLC, 302 So. 3d 1012 (Fla. 1st DCA 2020) (“Best Care”), that a contractor who had been...more
“I don’t want to do that because it will just upset them and they’ll make sure I don’t win.” This is a common concern I hear from clients when I help them review solicitations (invitations to bid (ITB), requests for proposals...more
Putting your best foot, or best personnel, forward seems like “Winning the Contract Award 101.” But a refresher course never hurts. Recently, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) decision in Deloitte Consulting, LLC...more
Proposal preparation can be a difficult and expensive process. On top of the normal challenges of spending thousands of dollars preparing what a contractor hopes is a successful proposal, they also face the risk of an agency...more
The author and playwright Clare Boothe Luce, known for her feline wit, is famously supposed to have said “No good deed goes unpunished.” While that remark may have had validity that in the 1930s New York café society, it...more
A recent Maryland Board of Public Works meeting addressed whether the state has flexibility in applying minority business enterprise (MBE) regulatory requirements in State contracts....more