Potential Bid Protest Dangers: When the Agency Produces Documents Early

Blog, Small Business Programs 04.30.14

By Alex Levine To paraphrase Virgil, beware of agency counsel bearing gifts.  Under the U.S. Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) bid protest rules, an agency is required to produce a report within 30 days of a protest that includes a copy of all relevant documents.  However, there is nothing preventing an agency from producing some or all of these documents even sooner.  And, in recent cases, we have seen agency counsel increasingly doing so. While the agency almost never explains why . . . Read More

Proposed FAR Amendment Would Greatly Expand Policing of Contract Employees for Personal Conflicts of Interest

Blog 04.16.14

By: Patrick T. Rothwell

People are people. As such, contract employees and self-employed subcontractors will inevitably create relationships with others based on common interests. Most of these relationships are, for purposes of this discussion, benign. However, in some cases, the relationships of contractors’ employees can result in actual or potential conflicts with the interests of the federal government. According to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”), a personal conflict of interest means “a situation in which a[n] employee has a financial interest, personal activity, or relationship that . . . Read More

“Are You Being Served?” If So, Your ESI Must Be Preserved!

Blog, Business & Transactions, Litigation & Dispute Resolution, Small Business Programs 04.15.14

Unlike the classic British sitcom “Are You Being Served?”, as any business owner who has been on the receiving end of a threat of litigation or was served with a complaint can attest, there is nothing remotely amusing about what is in store for the company. And one of the most challenging, time-consuming and costly aspects of litigation is the discovery process—whereby each side, if asked through interrogatories and document requests, must show its respective hand, in the process producing . . . Read More

Can You Have A Partnership of One and Why The Answer Matters to Joint Ventures

Blog, Business & Transactions 04.08.14

By Kimi Murakami Companies can come in all different shapes and sizes. They can be traditional C corporations, limited liability companies, general partnerships, limited partnerships, S corporations, joint ventures (“JVs”) or various combinations of the above. Selection of corporate structure should be made in consultation with your legal and tax advisors as it is critical when initially forming your company, particularly if you intend to perform government contracts. As with many decisions in running a government contract business, what may . . . Read More

Setting Aside the Glass Ceiling: WOSBs Should Have the Same Advantage as Other Set-Aside Programs

Blog, Small Business Programs 04.04.14

Published in the April 1, 2014 Federal Contracts Report. Small businesses are often touted as the engine of our economy, and rightly so. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, small businesses comprise 99.7 percent of U.S. employers, are responsible for 64 percent of net new private-sector jobs, and roughly 50 percent of private-sector employment. Recognizing that small businesses are the key to “maintain and strengthen the overall economy,” Congress has set goals for how much the federal government will spend . . . Read More

Recent Governmental decision may benefit contractors on breach of duty of good faith, fair dealing claims

Blog 03.31.14

By Brian Wilbourn It is likely that most prime contractors, at one time or another, have felt that their Government customer was not treating them fairly.  It is not always clear, however, when conduct that the contractor views as unfair or uncooperative goes so far as to constitute a breach of contract.  A recent decision from the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals has provided important clarifications to this question, which should benefit contractors in pursuing claims against the Government for . . . Read More