Government Contracts

  • July 24, 2024

    Newman Facing 2nd Suspension For 'Continuing Misconduct'

    A panel of Federal Circuit judges on Wednesday recommended U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman remain suspended for another year based on her ongoing refusal to cooperate with an investigation into her health, or even acknowledge the court's concerns.

  • July 24, 2024

    ICE Contractor Hit With Class Action Over Family Separations

    A father and son who were separated for six years under the Trump administration's policy of "zero tolerance" for unlawful border crossings have brought a proposed class action against the private contractor responsible for transporting children, seeking to make it pay for the emotional trauma families have endured.

  • July 24, 2024

    Ex-Pharma Exec Gets Jail For Insider Trading On Kodak Loan

    A Manhattan federal judge sentenced a former pharmaceutical executive from South Carolina to three months in prison Wednesday for taking over $500,000 of illegal trading profit based on his advance knowledge that Kodak would get a massive pandemic-era government loan.

  • July 23, 2024

    Hogan Lovells Wants Afghanistan Atty Fee Award Enforced

    Hogan Lovells US LLP has asked a New York federal court to enforce a more than $1.2 million award it secured against Afghanistan in arbitration over fees it says it's owed for the firm's work representing the country in various legal matters, including litigation over the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

  • July 23, 2024

    Construction Co. Protests Union Clause In Army Corps Deal

    Hensel Phelps Construction Co. has protested over terms of an Army Corps of Engineers construction contract requiring bidders to enter into a project labor agreement, mandated by regulation, saying the PLA requirement violates a competitive contracting law.

  • July 23, 2024

    Ex-Raytheon Worker Asks High Court To Take Up Firing Suit

    A former employee of defense contractor Raytheon asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse his ouster from the company, arguing that the Fifth Circuit's finding that he shouldn't be reinstated set up a circuit split.

  • July 23, 2024

    Colo. Judges Want Clarity On When Moot Cases Need Rulings

    Colorado appellate judges on Tuesday pushed a popular ski town to define what makes a case of "great public importance," as a major resort company argued its land fight with the town is weighty enough that the judges should rule even if the actual dispute is now moot.

  • July 23, 2024

    $680M Allergan FCA Suit Tossed After High Court Revival

    A Maryland federal judge on Tuesday again tossed a False Claims Act suit accusing an Allergan unit of overcharging Medicaid, previously revived by the U.S. Supreme Court, saying a whistleblower still hadn't shown any deliberate wrongdoing by the company.

  • July 23, 2024

    Oshkosh Says USPS Followed NEPA With New Vehicle Plan

    Oshkosh Defense joined the U.S. Postal Service in firing back at environmentalists and a coalition of 17 states' attempt to secure judgment in litigation protesting the agency's decision to replace its aging delivery fleet with only 62% electric vehicles, saying the group's challenge threatens to undermine such a significant transformation.

  • July 23, 2024

    Senate Dems Roll Out Bill To Codify Chevron Deference

    Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., led a group of Democratic senators Tuesday in introducing a bill to codify the now-defunct doctrine of Chevron deference after it was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court last month.

  • July 22, 2024

    No Injunction For Co.'s DQ From Habitat Restoration Deal

    A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge denied an Illinois-based construction company's emergency bid to halt the U.S. Army's procurement for a habitat restoration deal it was disqualified from, saying the protester failed to show it would be irreparably harmed.

  • July 22, 2024

    EPA Awards $4.3B In Grants For Climate Change Projects

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it's steering $4.3 billion in grant funding to 25 projects that promise to help curb greenhouse gas pollution, advance environmental justice and transition the country to clean power.

  • July 22, 2024

    State Street Sets Aside $4.2M To Address Wage Discrimination

    Federal financial services provider State Street agreed to set aside $4.2 million to make wage adjustments in the future as part of a settlement to resolve allegations that it discriminated against some women managing directors with its base pay and bonuses, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Monday.

  • July 22, 2024

    Gov't Wants Protest Over $186M In DOD Fuel Deals Thrown Out

    The Defense Logistics Agency has urged the Court of Federal Claims to dismiss a protest alleging it wrongly ignored misconduct by companies awarded $186 million in fuel delivery deals, saying it adequately investigated the claims and found nothing untoward.

  • July 22, 2024

    Claims Court Upholds JV's $15M Boiler Plant Contract

    A Court of Federal Claims judge rejected a construction company's protest over a $14.7 million U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs contract for renovating a boiler plant at a VA medical center in Pennsylvania, saying the agency reasonably awarded the contract to a mentor-protégé joint venture based on "best value trade-off."

  • July 22, 2024

    Ex-Lobbyist Asks To Be Severed From Madigan RICO Case

    The former Commonwealth Edison lobbyist on track to face a jury alongside former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan this fall asked a federal judge Friday to sever his corruption case from Madigan's, saying a joint trial would be unfair because Madigan's lawyers intend to act as "second prosecutors" against him.

  • July 22, 2024

    NY Judge Declares Migrant Challenge To Housing Policy Moot

    A New York federal court swept aside asylum-seekers' challenge to county-level housing restrictions that they say were designed to bar them, agreeing with local officials that the case was moot after they issued new policies.

  • July 22, 2024

    CEOs Want To Separate Bribery Trial From Navy Admiral's

    A pair of CEOs charged with bribing a retired four-star Navy admiral to potentially secure lucrative government contracts have asked a D.C. federal judge to sever their cases from the retired admiral's bribery trial, arguing that there's a "serious risk" they would be unfairly prejudiced by holding a joint trial.

  • July 22, 2024

    1st Circ. Hints At Higher Bar For Feds In Anti-Kickback Cases

    The First Circuit on Monday questioned the government's assertion that Congress intended to broaden the standard for liability in False Claims Act kickback cases when it passed a key amendment in 2010.

  • July 22, 2024

    Sullivan, Freshfields Steer $905M Goodyear Off-Road Biz Sale

    Sullivan & Cromwell LLP and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer guided the $905 million sale of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s off-the-road tire business to Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. except for the part of that business providing off-road tires to the U.S. military and other defense entities, the companies announced Monday.

  • July 22, 2024

    Boston Fund Can't Duck SEC's Unregistered Dealer Case

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Monday kept alive U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission allegations that Boston investment firm Auctus Fund violated securities laws by failing to register as a broker-dealer when harvesting deeply discounted shares of cash-strapped public companies through debt agreements.

  • July 22, 2024

    Ga. Dems Challenge 'Cronyism' Behind Fundraising Law

    A special campaign finance committee created by Georgia Republicans three years ago to sidestep limits on political fundraising is in the crosshairs of a recent lawsuit filed by the state's Democratic Party, which alleges the law creates an "asymmetrical campaign contribution scheme" designed to protect incumbents.

  • July 22, 2024

    Bus Parts Co. To Pay Up To $4M To End Criminal Fraud Probe

    French bus parts supplier CBM will pay up to about $4 million and enter into a non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. government to end an investigation into an alleged scheme to pass off generic parts to U.S. transit authorities as brand-name parts, Manhattan federal prosecutors said Monday.

  • July 22, 2024

    NYC Says Migrant Busing Has Stopped Amid Border Curbs

    New York City retreated from its pending motion in state court to block eight charter bus companies from contracting with Texas to transport migrants to the city, saying the busing has already stopped after the Biden administration implemented new border policies.

  • July 19, 2024

    Calif. Bar Backs Creating New Virtual Bar Exam To Cut Costs

    The State Bar of California's Board of Trustees has signed off on plans to negotiate a potentially $8 million, five-year deal with Kaplan North America LLC to replace the Multistate Bar Exam with its own state exam that could be taken remotely, according to a statement issued Friday.

Expert Analysis

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

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    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

  • How High Court Approached Time Limit On Reg Challenges

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve Board effectively gives new entities their own personal statute of limitations to challenge rules and regulations, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh's concurrence may portend the court's view that those entities do not need to be directly regulated, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Expect The Unexpected: Contracts For Underground Projects

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    Recent challenges encountered by the Mountain Valley Pipeline project underscore the importance of drafting contracts for underground construction to account for unexpected site conditions, associated risks and compliance with applicable laws, say Jill Jaffe and Brenda Lin at Nossaman.

  • How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts

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    As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • Series

    Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.

  • Fed. Circ. Percipient Gov't Contract Ruling Is Groundbreaking

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    The effects of the Federal Circuit's decision last month in Percipient.ai v. U.S. may be limited to commercial product and service suppliers, but it is significant for government procurement in opening the door to protests by suppliers who previously would have lacked standing and Court of Federal Claims jurisdiction, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

  • Opinion

    Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.

  • Justices' Bribery Ruling: A Corrupt Act Isn't Necessarily Illegal

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    In its Snyder v. U.S. decision last week, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a bribery law does not criminalize gratuities, continuing a trend of narrowing federal anti-corruption laws and scrutinizing public corruption prosecutions that go beyond obvious quid pro quo schemes, say Carrie Cohen and Christine Wong at MoFo.

  • 3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court clearly thinks it has done something big in overturning the Chevron precedent that had given deference to agencies' statutory interpretations, but regulated parties have to consider how agencies retain significant power to shape the law and its meaning, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Roundup

    After Chevron

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    In the month since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 26 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Opinion

    Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem

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    The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.

  • Contract Disputes Recap: Addressing Dispositive Motions

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    Stephanie Magnell and Bret Marfut at Seyfarth examine three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Claims and the U.S. Civilian Board of Contract Appeals that provide interesting takeaways about the nuances of motion practice utilized by the government to dispose of cases brought under the Contract Disputes Act prior to substantive litigation

  • Series

    Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I’ve learned while riding waves in the ocean and slopes in the mountains have translated to my legal career — developing strong mentor relationships, remaining calm in difficult situations, and being prepared and able to move to a backup plan when needed, says Brian Claassen at Knobbe Martens.

  • Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule

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    Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Mapping, Jurisdiction, Incumbency

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    In this month's bid protest roundup, Nicole Giles and Ethan Sterenfeld at MoFo discuss a decision from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and two from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, which highlight how labor mapping, jurisdiction questions and incumbency bias can affect outcomes.

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