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Government Contracts
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May 13, 2024
E-Rate Requests Aren't FCA Claims, Law Group Tells Justices
The Washington Legal Foundation urged the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether reimbursement requests for the Federal Communications Commission's E-Rate program are "claims" under the False Claims Act, arguing that a Seventh Circuit ruling that answered in the affirmative threatens wide-ranging consequences beyond the E-Rate program.
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May 13, 2024
Co. Says Typo Wrongly Cost It Shot At $10B Army IT Deal
An information technology firm has urged the Court of Federal Claims to restore its eligibility for a pending $10 billion U.S. Army IT hardware procurement, saying the Army wrongly excluded the company for one missing word in its proposal.
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May 13, 2024
Pa. Supreme Court Snapshot: Kleinbard Bill Battle Starts May
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania will weigh the spending powers of district attorneys in a Kleinbard LLC bill battle and whether an appeals court overstepped by greenlighting a hospital closure when the May argument lineup begins Tuesday.
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May 13, 2024
Texas, Mo. Say Border Contractors Lack Interests To Defend
Texas and Missouri have slammed contractors' attempts to defend the Biden administration's plans to use border wall construction funds to remediate existing barriers, telling a Texas federal court that the group lacks a direct interest in the case's outcome.
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May 13, 2024
Ex-Pa. City Housing Head Gets 3 Years In Prison For Fraud
The former head of an economically distressed Pennsylvania city's public housing authority was sentenced Monday to over three years in prison for bilking the agency out of $545,000 through a yearslong scheme of submitting inflated contracting bills for housing repairs to line his own pockets.
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May 10, 2024
Navy Defends Retaining Contractor Facing Labor Unrest
The U.S. Navy on Friday rebutted a Federal Circuit judge's suggestion that it might have turned "a blind eye" to a contractor's alleged labor law violations, saying it followed its obligations under procurement law to assess both performance and ethics.
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May 10, 2024
GAO Says DHS Unfairly Assessed Bids On $17M Support Deal
The U.S. Government Accountability Office has backed a protest over a $17.2 million U.S. Department of Homeland Security support services order, saying the agency failed to show its assessment of proposals was reasonable.
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May 10, 2024
Biz Claims Foreign Bribe Needed To Meet Energy Deal's Terms
An aviation fuel company protested the U.S. Defense Logistics Agency's latest effort to supply fuel to military bases in Djibouti, accusing the agency of requiring interested contractors to obtain a license that can, allegedly, only be received through bribery.
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May 10, 2024
UPMC Inks $38M Deal To End Neurosurgery FCA Suit
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has agreed to pay $38 million to put an end to a False Claims Act suit brought by three medical workers from its neurological surgery department who said the medical center fraudulently billed federal healthcare programs.
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May 10, 2024
No 'Piecemeal' Fees For Infant Data Win Amid 6th Circ. Appeal
A federal judge said Friday that he wouldn't award attorney fees to children who challenged Michigan's handling of blood samples collected in an infant health screening program until the state's Sixth Circuit appeal is resolved.
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May 09, 2024
3 Engineering Firms Sued Over Pittsburgh Bridge Collapse
Three engineering firms share responsibility with the city of Pittsburgh for the collapse of the Fern Hollow Bridge in 2022, a new lawsuit alleges, claiming the engineers failed to flag how dangerous and deteriorated the bridge was for years before it fell.
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May 09, 2024
3M, Dupont Want Conn. AG's PFAS Suit To Stay In Fed. Court
Stressing their work for the military, 3M Co. and several entities tied to what was once E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. have opposed a motion by the Connecticut Attorney General's Office to send a PFAS forever chemicals environmental pollution case back to state court.
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May 09, 2024
11th Circ. Urged To Reconsider Ruling In Cancer Cluster Case
A group of Florida families asked the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to reconsider its decision affirming a jury verdict that found defense contractor Pratt & Whitney was not liable for a cancer cluster near the company's former rocket testing site, arguing that the panel affirmed a legally deficient verdict form.
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May 09, 2024
Fed. Circ. Judge 'Baffled' By Gov't Args In Boeing Costs Case
An exasperated Federal Circuit judge on Thursday tore into the government's contention that a disputed cost accounting regulation has no bearing on Boeing's claim that the defense contractor was wrongly barred from offsetting multiple simultaneous accounting changes against each other.
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May 09, 2024
Justices Asked To Weigh In On $1.3B India Award Fight
Shareholders of an Indian satellite communications company are pressing the U.S. Supreme Court to clarify the analysis of a highly technical jurisdictional question as they look to revive their bid to enforce a $1.3 billion arbitral award against a state-owned division of India's space agency.
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May 09, 2024
9th Circ. Revives Northrop Retirees' Putative Class Action
The Ninth Circuit on Thursday once again resurrected a proposed class action accusing Northrop Grumman of misinforming retirees about their pension benefits, ruling that the retirees have plausibly alleged that they received inaccurate benefit statements.
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May 09, 2024
Firm Can't Get $99M Deal Reopened After Worker Poached
A consulting firm that lost a $99 million National Archives and Records Administration contract based on a proposed manager's qualifications couldn't convince the U.S. Government Accountability Office that the worker's new employment for the contract winner warranted reconsidering the deal.
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May 09, 2024
Okla. Law Curbing Anti-Oil Pension Fund Investments Blocked
Oklahoma can't enforce a law prohibiting the state pension system from investing in companies that limit oil and gas industry assets, a state judge ruled, finding the retiree leading the suit is likely to succeed on arguments that the statute is vague and violates the state constitution.
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May 09, 2024
Insurer Still Can't Escape Explosion Coverage Row
An insurer cannot yet avoid defending gas companies in personal injury litigation after a subcontractor caused an explosion injuring three people, an Indiana federal court has ruled, reiterating a previous finding that the subcontractor's ultimate release from liability following a settlement has no bearing on the gas companies' additional insured status.
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May 08, 2024
Fuel Truck Exec Cops To Rigging Firefighting Contract Bids
An Idaho fuel truck company executive accused of conspiring with others to manipulate bids for U.S. Forest Service firefighting contracts to suppress other competitors in the market over an eight-year period pled guilty Wednesday in federal court, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
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May 08, 2024
Fla. Defense Contractor Admits To Selling Parts From Turkey
A Florida defense contractor has pled guilty to federal conspiracy charges in connection to a scheme to defraud the U.S. Department of Defense, admitting that she violated export control laws by using a front company to supply critical military components that were manufactured in Turkey.
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May 08, 2024
Fed. Circ. Denies Siemens' Bid For Navy Energy Audit Costs
The Federal Circuit ruled Wednesday that the U.S. Navy doesn't owe a Siemens unit $5.7 million for costs the company incurred to investigate potential energy savings measures at two military installations, saying a related contract clearly didn't cover those costs.
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May 08, 2024
Colo. Sheriff Fights State Law That Let His Deputies Unionize
A Colorado county sheriff whose staff is unionizing has sued the state over the 2023 law that gave his workers the right to organize, seeking a declaration that the law does not apply to his office.
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May 08, 2024
GAO Backs DLA's Sole-Source Fuel Deal With Iraqi Contractor
The U.S. Government Accountability Office has dismissed a Virginia company's protest of a jet fuel contract the Defense Logistics Agency awarded to an Iraqi competitor, saying the protester's challenge of the deal was based on factual inaccuracies.
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May 08, 2024
Legal Access Program Being Set Up For Separated Families
The Biden administration has tapped the Acacia Center for Justice to manage a court-ordered legal access program to help migrant families stay in the U.S. after they were separated under a Trump-era policy to prosecute anybody caught entering the country unlawfully.
Expert Analysis
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Direct Claims Ruling May Alter Gov't Ties To Software Firms
A recent Federal Circuit decision allowing a software developer to pursue legal action under the Contract Disputes Act could change the government's relationship with commercial software providers by permitting direct claims, even in third-party purchase situations, say Dan Ramish and Zach Prince at Haynes Boone.
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Contract Disputes Recap: Facts Differ But Same Rules Apply
Zachary Jacobson and Sarah Barney at Seyfarth examine two decisions illustrating that reliance on a technicality may not save an otherwise untimely appeal, and that enforcement of commercial terms and conditions under a federal supply schedule contract may be possible.
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Series
Spray Painting Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My experiences as an abstract spray paint artist have made me a better litigator, demonstrating — in more ways than one — how fluidity and flexibility are necessary parts of a successful legal practice, says Erick Sandlin at Bracewell.
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Draft Pay Equity Rule May Pose Contractor Compliance Snags
The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council's recently proposed rule that would prohibit government contractors from requesting certain job applicants' salary history seems simple on the surface, but achieving compliance will be a nuanced affair for many contractors who must also adhere to state and local pay transparency laws, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.
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10 Areas To Watch In Aerospace And Defense Contracting Law
The near future holds a number of key areas to watch in aerospace and defense contracting law, ranging from dramatic developments in the space industry to recent National Defense Authorization Act updates, which are focused on U.S. leadership in emerging technologies, say Joseph Berger and Chip Purcell at Thompson Hine.
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Opinion
Judicial Independence Is Imperative This Election Year
As the next election nears, the judges involved in the upcoming trials against former President Donald Trump increasingly face political pressures and threats of violence — revealing the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence and uphold the rule of law, says Benes Aldana at the National Judicial College.
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Opinion
NIST March-In Framework Is As Problematic As 2021 Proposal
While the National Institute of Standards and Technology's proposed march-in framework on when the government can seize patents has been regarded as a radical departure that will support lowering prescription drug costs, the language at the heart of it is identical to a failed 2021 notice of proposed rulemaking, says attorney Kelly Morron.
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Series
Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.
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Compliance Steps After ABA White Collar Crime Conference
Senior law enforcement officials’ statements this month at the American Bar Association's white collar crime conference suggest government enforcement efforts this year will increasingly focus on whistleblower incentives, artificial intelligence and data protection, and companies will need to update their compliance programs accordingly, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.
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Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents
Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.
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What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks
Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.
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Understanding Fixed-Price Gov't Contracts And Inflation Relief
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Contractors party to fixed-price contracts should note the recent shift in the government’s approach to cost adjustments in light of inflation, and familiarize themselves with certain steps that could help mitigate economic losses arising from increased performance and delivery costs, says Craig Stetson at Capital Edge Consulting.
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BIPA's Statutory Exemptions Post-Healthcare Ruling
The Illinois Supreme Court's November opinion in Mosby v. Ingalls Memorial Hospital, which held that the Biometric Information Privacy Act's healthcare exemption also applies when information is collected from healthcare workers, is a major win for healthcare defendants that resolves an important question of statutory interpretation, say attorneys at Quinn Emanuel.
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Business Litigators Have A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment
As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.
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Series
Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.