The Procurement Playbook

It seems like a yearly ritual.  The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee (“SASC”) drafts and passes a version of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) that includes reforms aimed at curtailing bid protests, while the House Armed Services Committee (“HASC”) drafts and passes a version of the NDAA that […]

In its annual report to Congress, the Defense Contract Audit Agency (“DCAA”) released impressive metrics about its progress during the 2017 fiscal year. For many years, DCAA has struggled to manage a substantial number of backlogged incurred cost audits—most of which extended back several years, including some which extended back […]

Back when Congress passed the FY2017 NDAA, they included a provision (Section 1822) requiring SBA to create a pilot program to provide opportunities for qualified subcontractors to obtain past performance ratings. Specifically, Congress mandated that SBA create a 3-year pilot program whereby small business concerns without a past performance rating […]

The Department of Defense (“DoD”) recently issued a final rule regarding contractor disclosures of defective pricing issues on DoD contracts, which can arise where the contractor’s certified cost or pricing data is inaccurate, incomplete or is not current.  In such cases, these errors and omissions can result in significant contract […]

Oles Morrison Rinker & Baker, LLP, one of the West Coast’s most respected law firms, is pleased to announce that attorney David Yang has joined the firm as a partner. Yang’s practice focuses on government contracts where he advises clients on all critical aspects of their business, whether the issues […]

Often times the most difficult part of the government contract claims process is checking all the procedural “boxes” of a certified claim.  Failure to file a claim within six years of accrual, request a contracting officer’s final decision, or include a wet ink signature are just a few of the procedural […]

When do agency Boards of Contract Appeals have jurisdiction to hear a federal contract dispute under the Contract Disputes Act (CDA) when the dispute is with a surety that issued a bond on the project?  Answering this question is key to avoiding a government motion to dismiss for lack of […]

On May 1, 2018, Oles Morrison partner Adam Lasky will be on a panel discussing “Tips for Avoiding Litigation on Federal Construction Projects,” together with Paul Varela (Varela, Lee, Metz & Guarino), Neil O’Donnell (Rogers, Joseph O’Donnell, PC), and Jennifer Fiore (Dunlap Fiore, LLC), at the AGC Federal Contractors Conference 2018.  Adam and the panel […]

In the RAND Corporations’s 2018 report on DoD bid protests, RAND highlighted some concerning statistics regarding bid protests filed by small businesses. RAND discovered that more than 50% of protests were being filed by small businesses (more than double the percentage of prime contract dollars going to small businesses), and […]

The case of Green Valley Company, ASBCA No. 61275, presents an interesting conundrum for contractors facing fraud allegations who also have a contract claim against the government.  In 2006, the contractor presented invoices for payment to the government.  In 2017, the contractor converted those invoices into a certified claim requesting payment.  Under the […]