Navigating Bid Protest Choices at GAO and COFC
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) on Oct. 25, 2024, issued a proposed rule aimed at increasing small business participation in multiple award contracts (MACs) by expanding the application of the Rule of Two to...more
A recent decision, Independent Rough Terrain Center, LLC v. United States (“IRTC”),[1] confirms the U.S. Court of Federal Claims has jurisdiction over bid protests related to follow-on production contracts arising out of...more
When the U.S. Government licenses commercial software, it generally does so under the same terms as any other commercial software licensee, unless the terms of that license are inconsistent with federal law or do not...more
On December 21, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) dismissed a protest by ELS, an unsuccessful bidder on a Department of Defense (DOD) task order opportunity, concluding that it did not have jurisdiction to consider...more
This month’s Bid Protest Roundup include decisions regarding supplementation of the record and whether an agency may convert a sealed bid opportunity into a negotiated procurement due to lack of funds, as well as a case in...more
The U.S. Court of Federal Claims (COFC) recently unsealed its decision on damages for copyright infringement by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) in 4DD Holdings, Inc. v. United States (Case No. 15-945C). The Court awarded...more
This month, we feature three bid protest decisions—two from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and one from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”). Though each of these decisions focuses on a different...more
The origination of Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs) traces back to the October 1957 launch of Sputnik I by the Soviet Union and the subsequent Space Race. Congress created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration...more
A recent decision published by the Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”) highlights the legal perils contractors may face by failing to properly evaluate the impact of post-government employment restrictions (i.e., “revolving...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
Though we are not yet halfway through 2022, the COFC has issued two decisions that highlight divergent views from GAO precedent regarding the availability of key personnel and whether there is a presumption that an Agency...more
The U.S. Court of Federal Claims issues another decision highlighting a growing divergence in case law between the Court and the Government Accountability Office. COFC rejects GAO precedent for determining whether...more
While most federal procurements are conducted using the onerous regulations set forth in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and agency supplements, agencies are increasingly relying on the more flexible, but...more
In a bid protest, the record of the actions that the contracting agency took during the procurement is of paramount importance. Regardless of whether a protester files its challenge with the Government Accountability Office...more
This installment of our monthly Law360 bid protest spotlight considers: (1) a company’s successful challenge to an agency’s decision to take corrective action and reopen a competition the company had already won; (2) a...more
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Nika Technologies, Inc. v. United States provides an important clarification of the timeliness rules for filing a bid protest with the U.S. Government...more
WHAT: On February 4, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) reversed a Court of Federal Claims (COFC) judge’s ruling in a decision that clarifies what a contractor must do to preserve the right to stop...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit confirms that a protester seeking to avail itself of the statutory “automatic stay” of performance in connection with a GAO bid protest must file that protest within five days...more
The automatic stay of award is one of the key elements of a bid protest under the Competition in Contracting Act. The CICA stay is only available when a protest is filed no later than ten days after contract award or no later...more
A few months ago, we wrote about how the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (COFC) had defined when the protest clock starts running for a stay of contract performance pending a bid protest if the Department of Defense’s (DOD)...more
As experienced protest counsel, we know (i) that you can pick lint off of any procurement; and (ii) because of that fact, a protester alleging error in the procurement process needs to show that the error was “prejudicial.”...more
Relying upon the cryptic answers provided by a Magic 8-Ball when deciding to file a protest at the United States Court of Federal Claims (COFC) may sound farcical, but a recent decision by a split panel of the United States...more
This month’s Law360 spotlight examines three protest decisions addressing first article testing, proprietary information in unsolicited proposals, and timely submittal of proposals... Article first appeared in Law360, June...more
Enhanced Department of Defense (“DoD”) debriefings have been heavily utilized in recent years, but there remains uncertainty, and differing interpretations, regarding the point at which an offeror receiving an enhanced...more