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 13, 2023 - Federal Procurement
OMB Proposes New Domestic Preference Requirements for Federally Funded Infrastructure Projects
By: Damien C. Specht and Markus Gerhard Speidel
On February 9, 2023, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a proposed rule that would subject all federally funded infrastructure projects to domestic preference requirements that are materially similar to the Buy American Act requirements applicable to many federal procurements. For purposes of
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February 08, 2023 - Small Business
Is Your Joint Venture Agreement Compliant with Current Sba Regulations and Current Case Law?
By: Damien C. Specht, James A. Tucker and Alissandra Young McCann
The Small Business Administration’s (SBA) popular shields from affiliation for all-small and mentor-protégé joint ventures are powerful tools for helping small businesses succeed in the federal procurement marketplace. These tools, however, are subject to strict enforcement, iterative rule changes, and growing bodies of case law. To
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February 06, 2023 - Protests & Litigation
January 2023 Bid Protest Roundup: Size Protests, Blue & Gold, Sole Source
Since the January Bid Protest Roundup marks the beginning of February, we begin with a takeaway that needs no supporting authority beyond common sense: if you have not already done so, get your Valentine’s Day gift now. And, like a box of chocolates desperately
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January 18, 2023 - Coronavirus
Sixth Circuit Follows Suit in Affirming Preliminary Injunction of Contractor Vaccine Mandate
By: Joseph R. Palmore, J. Alex Ward, Krista A. Nunez and Roke Iko
On January 12, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit joined the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits in upholding a preliminary injunction against the enforcement of the Biden Administration’s effort to impose on federal contractors a variety of COVID-19 safety-related protocols, including
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January 17, 2023 - False Claims Act
Supreme Court to Consider the False Claims Act’s Intent Standard
By: Victoria Dalcourt Angle, J. Alex Ward, Adam L. Braverman and Joseph R. Palmore
On Friday, January 13, the Supreme Court agreed to consider whether the False Claims Act (“FCA”) covers compliance lapses tied to regulatory interpretations that are incorrect but “objectively reasonable.” The Supreme Court granted petitions for writs of certiorari in two cases, United States ex
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January 16, 2023 - Federal Procurement
A Bluer Shade of Blue: All “outstandings” Are Not Created Equal
By: James A. Tucker
A common mistake in competitive procurements is a mechanical fixation on the adjectival ratings, color ratings, or numerical “scores” a procuring agency assigns a proposal under a particular evaluation factor. In best value tradeoff acquisitions, one often hears (from both contractors and government personnel)
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January 13, 2023 - Protests & Litigation
December 2022 Bid Protest Roundup: Misrepresentations of Key Personnel, Mandatory-Source Saga Continued
By: Victoria Dalcourt Angle
This month’s Bid Protest Roundup considers two recent protests: (1) an important decision by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) concerning the awardee’s misrepresentation of the availability of key personnel, and (2) a U.S. Court of Federal Claims (COFC) protest on remand from the
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December 21, 2022 - Coronavirus
Fifth Circuit Affirms Preliminary Injunction of Contractor Vaccine Mandate
A divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on December 19, 2022, upheld a preliminary injunction of Executive Order 14042, halting the Biden administration’s effort to impose on federal contractors a variety of COVID-19 safety protocols. Over the dissent
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December 08, 2022 - Protests & Litigation
November 2022 Bid Protest Roundup: Best-Value Tradeoffs, Solicitations
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel
Sometimes a comparison of cases best illustrates the law. This month we analyze a double pair of recent GAO decisions. First, in CharDonnay and Triple Canopy , we compare decisions dissecting the merits of best-value determinations. Second, in Orlans and Cellco , we contrast pre-award challenges to
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December 07, 2022 - Intellectual Property
THE GOVERNMENT CONTRACTOR: Unrecognized and Overt Pressure on Contractors' Data and Software Rights: Risks Posed by H Clauses, Innocuous Acronyms (IPT, IDE, SaaS, DAL), and The Cloud
What do you really know about the data and software rights your engineers may well be giving up every day through Integrated Data Environments, Integrated Products Teams, the Cloud and such? Probably not enough, suggests Jay DeVecchio in an article for The Government Contractor discussing
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Welcome to the Government Contracts Insights Blog

OMB Proposes New Domestic Preference Requirements for Federally Funded Infrastructure Projects

By: Damien C. Specht and Markus Gerhard Speidel

Is Your Joint Venture Agreement Compliant with Current Sba Regulations and Current Case Law?

By: Damien C. Specht, James A. Tucker and Alissandra Young McCann

January 2023 Bid Protest Roundup: Size Protests, Blue & Gold, Sole Source

Sixth Circuit Follows Suit in Affirming Preliminary Injunction of Contractor Vaccine Mandate

By: Joseph R. Palmore, J. Alex Ward, Krista A. Nunez and Roke Iko

Supreme Court to Consider the False Claims Act’s Intent Standard

By: Victoria Dalcourt Angle, J. Alex Ward, Adam L. Braverman and Joseph R. Palmore

A Bluer Shade of Blue: All “outstandings” Are Not Created Equal

By: James A. Tucker

December 2022 Bid Protest Roundup: Misrepresentations of Key Personnel, Mandatory-Source Saga Continued

By: Victoria Dalcourt Angle

Fifth Circuit Affirms Preliminary Injunction of Contractor Vaccine Mandate

November 2022 Bid Protest Roundup: Best-Value Tradeoffs, Solicitations

By: Markus Gerhard Speidel

THE GOVERNMENT CONTRACTOR: Unrecognized and Overt Pressure on Contractors' Data and Software Rights: Risks Posed by H Clauses, Innocuous Acronyms (IPT, IDE, SaaS, DAL), and The Cloud