Welcome to the Government Contracts Insights Blog

Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts Insights blog provides an in-depth analysis of news, developments, and trends impacting government contracting and procurement. Through Insights, attorneys from our nationally recognized Government Contracts and Public Procurement practice will offer a real-time assessment of the statutory, regulatory, legal, and business-related developments that are shaping the industry. This blog will also examine a full array of U.S. and non-U.S. public procurement issues, mindful that our clients compete in a global marketplace.

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February 01, 2021 - Small Business
Roadblocks Inherent to the Public Procurement Process for Minority-Owned Businesses (Guide 1 of 4)
By: J. Alex Ward, Damien C. Specht, Alissandra Young McCann and Roke Iko
In the next four posts, we will share guides specific to federal contracting as a minority-owned small business. Minority-owned businesses often face unique challenges in the public procurement process due to systemic barriers embedded in the process. These barriers affect minority-owned business at all
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January 27, 2021 - Protests & Litigation
Companies Pay Criminal Penalties and Compensation for Undermining Competition
By: Tina D. Reynolds and Markus Gerhard Speidel
On Tuesday, January 19, 2021, the Department of Justice announced charges against two providers of foreign language services for conspiracy to defraud the government on a multimillion dollar contract by impeding, impairing, obstructing, and defeating competitive bidding. The two companies, Comprehensive Language Center Inc.
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January 21, 2021 - Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
Top 10 International Anti-Corruption Developments for December 2020
By: James M. Koukios and Charles E. Duross
In order to provide an overview for busy in-house counsel and compliance professionals, we summarize below some of the most important international anti-corruption developments from the past month, with links to primary resources. This month we ask: Which U.S. agency brought its first foreign
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January 19, 2021 - Defense, Intellectual Property
The Federal Circuit, in Boeing, Backs Contractors’ Proprietary Markings, but Leaves Open an Important Question on Scope
By: Locke Bell
Federal contractors received some good news from the Federal Circuit this holiday season. The court held, in Boeing Co. v. Secretary of Air Force , that the Department of Defense (DoD) Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) data rights clauses do not prohibit a contractor
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January 19, 2021 - Small Business
The Economic Aid Act and a Second Round of PPP Loans
By: Tina D. Reynolds and Damien C. Specht
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, which became law on December 27, 2020, includes a second round of stimulus funding in the form of the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act(the “Economic Aid Act”). Among many other measures, the Economic
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January 11, 2021 - Cybersecurity & Data Privacy
Top Cybersecurity Considerations for Government Contractors in 2021
By: Tina D. Reynolds
Although it was already apparent, recent events have made it even clearer that cybersecurity is an essential concern for government contractors. The coming year is poised to include many cybersecurity-related changes and developments. Below we highlight just a few: Continued Rollout of Department of
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January 06, 2021 - Protests & Litigation
December 2020/Annual Bid Protest Roundup (Law360 Spotlight)
By: Victoria Dalcourt Angle
This installment of our monthly Law360 bid protest spotlight examines four recent protest decisions from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”), discusses a few key takeaways from the GAO’s annual report, and provides a year-end review of key bid protest decisions from 2020. This
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January 05, 2021 - Acquisition Regulations
MoFo Law Clerk Co-Authors Contract Management Article on Sustainable Procurement
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel
MoFo law clerk Markus Speidel co-wrote an article for National Contract Management Association’s Contract Management magazine with George Washington University Law School Professor Steven Schooner. The article, titled “‘Warming Up’ to Sustainable Procurement,” discusses how the procurement community can address climate change via sustainable
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December 16, 2020 - Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
Top 10 International Anti-Corruption Developments for November 2020
By: James M. Koukios and Charles E. Duross
In order to provide an overview for busy in-house counsel and compliance professionals, we summarize below some of the most important international anti-corruption developments from the past month, with links to primary resources. This month we ask: How will the election of Joe Biden as president
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December 15, 2020 - Federal Procurement, National Security
Initial Thoughts on the 2021 NDAA’s Procurement Provisions
By: J. Alex Ward, W. Jay DeVecchio, James A. Tucker and Locke Bell
Both houses of Congress now have voted to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021. Although the threat of a presidential veto still hangs over the NDAA, we highlight below a few of the procurement-related provisions that likely will remain
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