In last month’s post, we considered First Kuwaiti Trading & Contracting W.L.L., v. Dep’t of State, CBCA 3506, 2018 WL 6423911 (Dec. 3, 2018), and Appeal of ECC International, LLC, ASBCA 60484, 2018 WL 6251069 (Nov. 16, 2018),...more
On the eve of the Vicksburg campaign in October 1862, Abraham Lincoln instructed Ulysses S. Grant, “Follow law, and forms of law, as far as convenient.” In a war zone, Lincoln seemed to recognize, there may be some...more
Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld once explained that there are the known unknowns and the unknown unknowns. Some greeted that gnomic pronouncement with bemused smiles. But contractors operating in a contingency...more
As talk of a trade war escalates, government contractors should be alert to the possibility that the recently imposed steel and aluminum tariffs could increase their cost of performance. The orders, signed March 8, 2018,...more
In Escobar, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a defendant could be found liable under the False Claims Act for submitting impliedly false claims for payment. Under the implied certification theory of liability, a claim for...more
Last week, the Federal Circuit issued a rare opinion on a bid protest in Agustawestland North America, Inc. v. United States. Bid protest decisions by the Court of Federal Claims are seldom appealed by protesters because the...more
A recently leaked internal memorandum (“Memorandum”) suggests the end is near for the Department of Justice (DOJ) practice of sitting idly by while relators use meritless qui tam actions to shake down companies unwilling to...more
This is the first in a short series of forecasts from our Government Contracts partners on things to watch for in government contracts in Fiscal Year 2018. For more in-depth discussions of current events and trends, please...more
In a recent Protest Roundup, we discussed Dell Federal Systems, LP v. United States, 2017 WL 2981811 (Fed. Cl. July 3, 2017), a case in which a contractor successfully challenged the scope of the voluntary corrective action...more
We’ll be watching with interest as Pond Constructors, Inc. v. Government Accountability Office, No. 1:17-cv-00881, makes its way through the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Following an unsuccessful bid...more
The Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA) recently affirmed that it would follow the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) and Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) in refusing to direct an agency to revise a Contract...more