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Government Contracts
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April 04, 2024
GAO Says Navy Awardee Ineligible Due To Registration Lapse
The U.S. Government Accountability Office has backed a protest over a nearly $5 million Navy custodial services contract, saying the awardee's attempt to re-register in a federal contractor database ahead of expiry didn't excuse a breach of a continuous registration requirement.
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April 03, 2024
We Had No Conflict In Postal Service Bid, Co. Tells Fed Circ.
A company excluded from a U.S. Postal Service explosives detection contract told the Federal Circuit on Wednesday that a claims court judge hadn't justified his ruling that a conflict of interest stemming from the company's previous work for the service couldn't be mitigated.
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April 03, 2024
US Escapes $7.5M Demand For Bomb-Sniffing K9s In Kabul
The U.S. Court of Federal Claims has tossed a non-governmental organization's lawsuit seeking $7.5 million from the U.S. government for K9 bomb-sniffing work in an area of Afghanistan that housed foreign embassies, saying the government never agreed to guarantee payment.
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April 03, 2024
Insurer Wants $38M For Covering Unfinished Road Jobs
An insurance company has asked a federal court to force companies connected to an insolvent contractor to hand over more than $38 million to compensate for costs it covered for unfinished jobs.
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April 03, 2024
Fed. Circ. Struggles With Ambiguity In $14M Army Corps Row
Federal Circuit judges struggled Wednesday to understand ambiguous terms in a company's contract with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for post-hurricane power restoration, indicating that neither party had clearly explained if the contractor has a valid $14 million claim for additional work needed.
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April 03, 2024
Groups Fight DOL's Bid To Toss Suit Challenging Wage Rule
A pair of construction industry trade groups urged a Texas federal court to preserve their challenge to a U.S. Department of Labor rule that revises prevailing wage calculations for federally funded projects, arguing that the rule injures both them and the firms they represent.
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April 03, 2024
3rd Circ. Judge Wonders If Philly Union Rule Dispute Is Moot
A Third Circuit judge on Wednesday wondered whether a former Philadelphia mayor's order requiring contractors to pay dues to "city-approved" unions was now moot, given the new administration's assurances that it won't be implemented, as contractors urged the court to find that the scrapped rule should be banned by law.
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April 03, 2024
Enviro Group Sues DOE Over $1.1B Diablo Canyon Award
Environmental group Friends of the Earth slapped the U.S. Department of Energy with a complaint in California federal court seeking to unravel the agency's $1.1 billion award for the continued operation of the state's last remaining nuclear power plant.
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April 03, 2024
14 AGs Urge DOL To Seek More Payroll Info From Contractors
Contractors performing construction, alteration or repair work on government buildings should have to give the U.S. Department of Labor more detailed information about the deductions they take from workers' wages, a coalition of Democratic state attorneys general told the agency in a letter publicized Wednesday.
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April 03, 2024
Beekeeper Groups Seek Fees From EPA After 9th Circ. Appeal
Attorneys for beekeeper groups in an appeal over a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency decision on insecticides have asked the Ninth Circuit to award nearly $750,000 in legal fees after a ruling that hammered the EPA but left the agency's decision intact.
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April 03, 2024
Pharma Exec, Cousin Cop To Insider Trading On Kodak Loan
A pharmaceutical company's executive and his cousin on Wednesday pled guilty to trading on information they acquired through the company's partnership with Eastman Kodak Co. about a government loan the photography giant was set to receive during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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April 03, 2024
Skanska Inks $1.4B Contract To Replace Seattle Bridge
Skanska and Washington's Department of Transportation closed a $1.4 billion bridge replacement contract that aims to update Seattle's Portage Bay Bridge so that it's up to "current seismic resiliency standards," the construction and development company announced.
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April 03, 2024
Fed. Circ. Backs Firing IRS Agent Who Golfed On Agency Time
A former senior appraiser for the Internal Revenue Service was appropriately fired for golfing on company time, a federal appeals court affirmed Wednesday.
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April 02, 2024
Feds Want 2 Years For Culprit In Fake NASA Contracts Plot
Prosecutors urged a Virginia federal judge to sentence a Michigan man to 25 months in prison Tuesday after he admitted to defrauding investors through fake NASA contracts, seeking a sentence lighter than the guideline range because he spent eight grueling months in a Philippines detention center before he was in U.S. custody.
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April 02, 2024
IT Firm Decries Commerce's 'Unilateral' $1.5B Award Redo
An IT consulting firm told the Federal Circuit on Monday that its right to challenge a $1.5 billion U.S. Commerce Department procurement in the claims court was undermined when the agency took corrective action before seeking permission from the court.
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April 02, 2024
Crowell & Moring Attys Avoid Bias Fault In Army Deal Protest
The U.S. Government Accountability Office denied a Virginia-based defense contractor's protest of a $192.7 million U.S. Army technical and engineering support deal but refused to fault Crowell & Moring LLP attorneys for representing the contractor despite conflict of interest allegations.
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April 02, 2024
Ga. Judge Tosses Ex-Police Chief's Retaliation Suit
A Georgia federal judge has freed the city of Austell from a lawsuit brought against it by its former police chief, who alleged that he was forced out of his job after three years of raising concerns about the safety of department facilities.
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April 02, 2024
Casino Outfits Say High Court Must Review Tribal Betting Suit
The U.S. Supreme Court is the correct venue for a case by two casino operators that seek to undo a tribal gaming compact in Florida now that the state's Supreme Court has refused to take up the case, one of the companies has told the nation's highest court.
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April 02, 2024
Ally Of NYC Mayor Skirts Prison In Straw Donor Case
A friend and former colleague of New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday was spared any time in prison following his admission to conspiring to use straw donors to juice the public funding of the mayor's 2021 campaign.
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April 02, 2024
Conn. Dentists Used Illegal Patient Recruiting, Suit Says
Federal and state authorities filed a kickback and false claims lawsuit in Connecticut federal court on Tuesday against two dental practices in the state and their co-owners for allegedly paying a patient recruiter to generate business through Medicaid.
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April 02, 2024
Ex-Army Officer Says Gov't Smeared Him With False Claims
A former major general in the U.S. Army on Tuesday sued the U.S. Department of Defense and others, alleging that the government wrongly recorded him as having assaulted his partner, despite her recanting the allegations and admitting they were a ploy to seek attention.
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April 02, 2024
JFK Taxi Dispatchers Charged With Taking Bribes For Rides
Nine taxi dispatchers at John F. Kennedy International Airport have been charged with accepting cash bribes in exchange for allowing drivers to skip the line to pick up passengers, the Queens district attorney has announced.
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April 02, 2024
USPTO Targeted In Brothers' Patent Litigation Campaign
Two brothers who are software engineers and claim to have invented two-factor authorization are accusing the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office of infringing their patents with its sign-in website.
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April 02, 2024
Del. Justices Agree To Review Ex-Xerox Unit Coverage Row
The Delaware Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to review a lower court's decision to set aside a jury verdict finding that an ex-Xerox unit tried to defraud its insurers into providing coverage for a portion of a $236 million Medicaid fraud-related settlement with Texas.
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April 02, 2024
King & Spalding Lands 3 Kasowitz Partners For Biz Litigation
King & Spalding LLP announced Tuesday that it had hired three partners for its business litigation practice from Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP, including the co-chair of Kasowitz's real estate litigation practice group.
Expert Analysis
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How Gov't Use Of Suspension And Debarment Has Evolved
A recent report to Congress about federal agencies' suspension and debarment activities in fiscal years 2021 and 2022 shows exclusion remains a threat to government contracting businesses, though proactive engagement with suspending-and-debarring officials and alternate forms of redress are becoming more common, says David Robbins at Jenner & Block.
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Uncharted Waters Ahead For FCA Litigation In 2024
Following a year of significant court decisions, settlements, recoveries and proposed amendments, 2024 promises to be a lively year for False Claims Act actions and litigation, and one that will hopefully provide more clarity as FCA jurisprudence evolves, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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What's On Tap For Public Corruption Prosecutions In 2024
All signs point toward another year of blockbuster public corruption prosecutions in 2024, revealing broader trends in enforcement and jurisprudence, and promising valuable lessons for defense strategy, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.
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Series
Baking Bread Makes Me A Better Lawyer
After many years practicing law, and a few years baking bread, I have learned that there are a few keys to success in both endeavors, including the assembly of a nourishing and resilient culture, and the ability to learn from failure and exercise patience, says Rick Robinson at Reed Smith.
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Federal Courts And AI Standing Orders: Safety Or Overkill?
Several district court judges have issued standing orders regulating the use of artificial intelligence in their courts, but courts should consider following ordinary notice and comment procedures before implementing sweeping mandates that could be unnecessarily burdensome and counterproductive, say attorneys at Curtis.
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The 5 Most Important Bid Protest Decisions Of 2023
Attorneys at Bradley Arant discuss noteworthy 2023 bid protest decisions from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and U.S. Government Accountability Office, offering perspectives on standing, document production, agency deference, System for Award Management registration requirements and mentor-protégé joint venture proposal evaluations.
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4 Questions On Groundbreaking New Foreign Bribery Law
The recently enacted Foreign Extortion Prevention Act will significantly alter the anti-corruption landscape under U.S. law by allowing prosecutors to pursue foreign officials for soliciting or accepting bribes, but it’s not yet clear how the statute will be used and by whom, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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OIG Report Has Clues For 2024 Healthcare Fraud Enforcement
A recent report from the Health Department's Office of the Inspector General reveals healthcare fraud and abuse enforcement trends that will continue in 2024, from increased telehealth oversight to enhanced policing of managed care, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.
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7 E-Discovery Predictions For 2024 And Beyond
The legal and technical issues of e-discovery now affect virtually every lawsuit, and in the year to come, practitioners can expect practices and policies to evolve in a number of ways, from the expanded use of relevancy redactions to mandated information security provisions in protective orders, say attorneys at Littler.
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DOD's Proposed Cyber Rule: What Contractors Must Know
A review of the U.S. Department of Defense's recently published Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification proposed rule, requiring independent third-party cybersecurity assessments for many defense contractors, suggests that there will be a competitive advantage to prompt demonstration of full compliance with the rule, says Robert Metzger at Rogers Joseph.
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Tips For Contractors Preparing For Potential Gov't Shutdown
With elements of the Congress’ latest continuing resolution expiring on Jan. 19, companies that may be fatigued by preparing for potential shutdown after potential shutdown should consider the current political climate and take specific steps now, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.
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2 FCPA Settlements Illuminate Self-Disclosure, Disgorgement
Two of last year’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act settlements — with biomedical company Lifecore and mining company Corsa Coal — suggest that the government will be much more flexible in negotiating disgorgement amounts if an entity voluntarily self-discloses misconduct, say Michael Gilbert and Lucas Amodio at Sheppard Mullin.
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Opinion
Anti-Kickback Statute Does Not Require But-For Causation
A proper interpretation of the Anti-Kickback Statute clearly indicates that but-for causation is not required for False Claims Act Liability, and courts that hold otherwise will make it significantly easier for fraudsters to avoid accountability, says Kenneth Capesius at Baron & Budd.
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5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2024
Over the next year and beyond, litigation funding will continue to evolve in ways that affect attorneys and the larger litigation landscape, from the growth of a secondary market for funded claims, to rising interest rates restricting the availability of capital, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.
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Lessons From DOJ's Handling Of Rare Medicare Fraud Case
The U.S. Department of Justice's recent indictment against HealthSun sheds light on the relatively rare circumstances in which the agency may pursue criminal charges for fraud involving Medicare Advantage, but its subsequent decision not to prosecute shows that compliance efforts can mitigate penalties, say attorneys at WilmerHale.