Government Fight and Arguments for Why its Solicitation Was Unduly Restrictive of Competition Came too Late. In a recent bid protest filed by Pitney Bowes, Inc., of Washington, DC, the U.S. GAO sustained the protest against Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Pitney Bowes litigated the case on… Read more »
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) ruled against the Court of Federal Claims decision on a Request for Equitable Adjustment Claim (REA) against Agility Defense for increased cost under the provisions of FAR 16.503. The Appeals from the Claims Court was due to denial of a government… Read more »
Caution: Violations of the Ostensible Contractor Rule Result in Lost Contracts Given the new SBA subcontractor rules and regulations, subcontractors should pay special attention to whether or not they still can be ostensibly affiliated. Although the new SBA affiliation rules relax the possibility of becoming affiliated, the Ostensible Subcontractor Rule… Read more »
In a recent case, the US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals (CAFC)dismissed a case in part because Plaintiff could not show privity of contract with the federal government. This is a costly mistake that companies should be aware of when they contemplate filing any type of case related to a… Read more »
Brutal Government Contractor Mistake Cause Lost Appeal For Quantum Meruit Claims at COFC. Government contractors often make the costly mistake of performing out of scope work without the expressed written permission of the contracting officer. Many contractors fail at the litigation stage because they do not understand the difference between… Read more »
Avoid Costly Mistakes Under the New Joint Venture Rules The new SBA joint venture agreement regulations primarily focus on broadening the exclusion from affiliation for small business size status. See 13 CFR 121.103(h). Specifically, the new rule allows two or more small businesses to joint venture for any procurement without being… Read more »
Not understanding the small business set aside subcontracting rules that govern whether or not your company is a similarly situated small business can cost everyone the contract in a small business set aside size protests Theodore P. Watson, Esq. Many small businesses will be faced with dissecting the most recent SBA… Read more »
A common question arises when government contractors file a bid protest that challenges the agency’s past performance evaluation. Can the agency still give the awardee a higher performance rating when its CPAR ratings show that it had an unsatisfactory rating on one of its projects? It depends upon the documentation of… Read more »
Effective June 30, 2016, the Small Business Administration (SBA subcontracting) changed some of the key points in the limitations on subcontracting clauses for small business set-aside contracts. Failure to properly assess compliance could potentially cost you the contract in a bid protest or even cause your company to be subject… Read more »
Recently, many federal government contract bidders have experienced an adverse contractor responsibility determination trend when the agency evaluates their proposal. There are specific actions that the contracting officer must follow. Without a clear understanding of the regulations, you could miss out on a lucrative contract award. Challenging the agency’s nonresponsibility… Read more »