Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts Insights provides our in-depth analysis of developments and trends impacting government contracting. Through Insights, our attorneys offer a real-time assessment of the statutory, regulatory, legal, and business-related developments and trends that are shaping the industry. We also examine a full array of non-U.S. public procurement issues, mindful that our clients compete in a global marketplace.Morrison Foerster’s nationally recognized Government Contracts and Public Procurement practice represents the world’s leading companies in the aerospace and defense, intelligence, cybersecurity, information technology, financial and professional services, education, healthcare, infrastructure, and logistics support sectors. We are enlisted to address our clients’ most complex and important legal issues. Our work includes contract and subcontract negotiation and other transactional matters, business and regulatory compliance counseling, internal investigations, bid protests, and a wide array of enforcement and litigation matters. Our clients range from Fortune 50 companies to small and medium-sized companies just entering the public sector. We advise both U.S. and non-U.S. companies involved in municipal, state, federal, and non-U.S. procurement matters.<h2>ABOUT MORRISON FOERSTER</h2>Morrison Foerster is a leading global law firm that transforms complexity into advantage for its clients. Our clients include some of the largest financial institutions, banks, consulting and accounting firms, and Fortune 100, technology, and life sciences companies. Highlighting the firm’s commitment to client service, leadership in market-changing deals and impact litigation, and values-based culture, Morrison Foerster has been repeatedly recognized as one of the top 10 firms on The American Lawyer’s A-List. Year after year, the firm receives significant recognition from Chambers and The Legal 500 across their various guides, including Global, USA, Asia‑Pacific, Europe, UK, Latin America, and FinTech Legal. Our lawyers passionately care about delivering legal excellence while living our values. Morrison Foerster has a long-standing commitment to creating a culture that respects and celebrates differences, while providing an inclusive environment. The firm has achieved Mansfield Certification Plus since 2018 as a result of successfully reaching at least 30 percent women, communities of color, and LGBTQ+ lawyer representation in a notable number of current leadership roles and committees. The firm also has a long history of commitment to the community and society through providing pro bono legal services, including litigating for civil rights and civil liberties, improving public education and fostering the wellbeing of children, advocating for veterans, promoting international human rights, enforcing the right to asylum, and safeguarding the environment.

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Tina is Co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts & Public Procurement practice. She represents a wide variety of government contractors including information technology, defense, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical companies, with a focus on general contract counseling and compliance, particularly concerning intellectual property, and cybersecurity matters and federal grant funding.Tina counsels contractors on compliance with federal, state and local acquisition and ethics regulations and with the evolving myriad of requirements pertaining to data security and cybersecurity. She has been involved with numerous internal investigations and compliance reviews, and with mandatory and voluntary disclosures to agencies, and litigation of False Claims Act matters.Tina routinely advises clients concerning:<ul><li>Prime-subcontractor relationships</li><li>Sources of supply and country of origin requirements</li><li>Price reductions and price reporting issues</li><li>Organizational conflicts of interest</li><li>Safeguarding of intellectual property and other proprietary interests</li><li>Licensing and data rights issues</li><li>Handling of classified materials and controlled unclassified information</li><li>Agency suspension and debarment proceedings</li></ul>She also assists clients with due diligence and other activities related to the acquisition of government contracting concerns, and with the drafting and negotiation of teaming agreements, subcontracts, licensing agreements, and cooperative research and development agreements. She also assists clients applying for federal grants (including SBIR and STTR agreements), and those who seek to obtain other transactional authority agreements, as well as those competing for state and local government work.Tina’s litigation experience includes government contracts claims litigation in federal courts and before boards of contract appeals, bid protests before the Government Accountability Office and the Court of Federal Claims, and complex disputes in federal courts, including civil fraud and False Claims Act litigation and reverse Freedom of Information Act litigation.Prior to joining Morrison Foerster, Tina worked at another large national firm and as a trial attorney in the Office of the General Counsel of the Navy, Navy Litigation Office.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><ul><li>Negotiation of largest CHIPS Act federal funding agreement between multinational semiconductor corporation and U.S. Department of Commerce.</li><li>Negotiated prime contract and major subcontracts related to the Department of Energy’s next generation supercomputer program, including extensive IP rights negotiations and negotiation of associated patent rights waivers.</li><li>Negotiated series of other transaction authority agreements with DARPA and associated subcontracts with more than a dozen research universities on behalf of a firm biotech client, including complex IP rights allocations and material transfer agreements.</li><li>Assist clients with FedRAMP authorization process and with development of license agreements for software products sold to federal, state and local government agencies.</li><li>Cyber incident response counseling to some of the largest companies and organizations impacted by security incidents.</li><li>Advises clients on Bayh-Dole reporting of inventions and IP strategies for contracts and grants.</li><li>Conducts due diligence for major government contract mergers and acquisitions.</li></ul>

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Tina is co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts & Public Procurement practice. She counsels a wide variety of government contractors on compliance with federal acquisition and ethics regulations. She drafts and negotiates contracts on their behalf and has been involved with numerous internal investigations and compliance reviews, and with bid protest, contract claims, and False Claims Act litigation. She also advises on M&A transactions involving government contractors.

Tina D. Reynolds

Jim Tucker is of counsel in Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts and Public Procurement Practice Group and is based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office.Jim’s practice runs the gamut of litigation and counseling in federal procurement matters, with an emphasis on bid protests, Cost Accounting Standards disputes, and small business matters. He has represented both protesters and awardees in scores of protests before the Government Accountability Office, the Court of Federal Claims, and procuring agencies, in acquisitions ranging from small business procurements to multibillion-dollar contracts of global significance. His representative protest matters span the aerospace sector, the Intelligence Community, base operations and logistics, healthcare, nuclear and environmental work, and information technology and software acquisitions. His protests have included both classified and unclassified programs. In addition to prevailing in published decisions, Jim has also secured favorable corrective action on behalf of clients in a wide variety of protests that were resolved without a published decision.Jim’s work also focuses on disputes over cost allowability and compliance with the Cost Accounting Standards, and he has appeared before the Armed Services and Civilian Boards of Contract Appeals, in size and status protests before Small Business Administration (SBA) area offices, and appeals before the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals. Jim regularly counsels clients on contract interpretation, organizational conflicts of interest, and small business compliance.Jim graduated with high honors from the George Washington University Law School, where he focused his studies on federal procurement law, was a member of the Law Review, and interned with the General Services Administration’s suspension and debarment office. Jim also holds a degree in theology magna cum laude from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and a bachelor’s degree in classical languages and literature summa cum laude from the University of Kentucky, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa.

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Jim maintains an active practice in bid protests before the Government Accountability Office and contracting agencies and counsels clients in contract disputes and compliance obligations.

Jim Tucker is of counsel in Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts and Public Procurement Practice Group and is based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. Jim’s practice runs the gamut of litigation and counseling in federal procurement matters, with an emphasis on bid protests, Cost Accounting Standards disputes, and small business matters.

James Tucker

<div style="margin-bottom: 15px;" class="videoWrapper"><iframe class="sticky-video" title="Meet Alex Ward, Government Contracts Practice Co-Chair" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/TkliwdSlTaQ?rel=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="1" title="iframe"></iframe></div>J. Alex Ward is co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts and Public Procurement group. His practice covers a full range of government contracts matters, including investigations, bid protests, claims, general litigation, corporate transactions, and counseling. Alex strives in all matters is to provide his clients the highest level of efficient and effective representation.Alex represents contractors in internal and external investigations, disclosures to the government, and qui tam litigation, with great success in reducing or eliminating his clients’ exposure through active engagement with the government. His work in this area includes obtaining numerous declinations and dismissals of False Claims Act cases in their earliest stages, sparing his clients the cost, risk, and exposure of litigation.He has also served as lead counsel in dozens of bid protests involving military and civilian agency procurements of a wide range of products and services, including all manner of pre- and post-award protests in the GAO, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, and state tribunals, as well as appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and size protest appeals before the SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals.Alex handles all aspects of the claims process, from the initial assessment and drafting of requests for equitable adjustment through litigation in the Boards of Contract Appeals and the Court of Federal Claims. Alex’s practice also covers the full gamut of other controversies confronting government contractors, including prime-sub, teaming partner, employer-employee, competitor, and indemnification disputes. His litigation work also includes a wide variety of pro bono engagements, in which he has represented both individual and institutional clients in matters ranging from immigration and criminal defense to sustainable procurement and protection of the environment.Prior to joining the firm, Alex served in the U.S. Army as a commissioned officer and an Assistant to the General Counsel of the Army responsible for civil works and international matters, and as a clerk for judges on the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Armed Forces and the D.C. Circuit. He is a member of the Boards of the Morrison & Foerster Foundation and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and of Law360’s Government Contracts Editorial Board.

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Alex is co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts and Public Procurement practice. His practice covers a full range of government contracts matters, including bid protests, claims, investigations, corporate transactions, and counseling.

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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.Read about our <a href="http://govcon.mofo.com/editors/">Authors</a>.Never miss a post. Subscribe to get real-time updates.

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Marking Commercial Technical Data After Flight Safety

Is Change Around the Corner? One Proposal to Forge Sweeping Changes to Defense Contracting

FAR Reform Now Underway

Deregulating Federal Procurement: Implications of Three Recent Executive Actions

Kickstarting AI in the Federal Government: OMB’s Policy to Implement Executive Order 14179

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The current administration’s efforts to reform the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) are now officially underway. On April 15, 2025, in an Executive Order titled <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/restoring-common-sense-to-federal-procurement/" target="_blank">Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement</a> (EO or “Order”), the White House directed the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) to trim the FAR. As <a href="https://govcon.mofo.com/topics/far-overhaul-underway" target="_blank">anticipated</a>, the Order directs OFPP to remove any provision not “required by statute or essential to sound procurement.” The Order gives OFPP broad discretion to determine which provisions are essential and which are not. Below, we outline key provisions of the Order and discuss their potential implications for government contractors.Key Provisions of the Executive OrderIn what the White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2025/04/white-house-announces-revolutionary-federal-procurement-overhaul/" target="_blank">heralds</a> as “a sweeping review and rewrite,” dubbed the “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO),” the Order directs OFPP to identify “unnecessary regulations” or other “undue barriers” and excise them from the FAR. The stated policy goal is to create “the most agile, effective, and efficient procurement system possible.” The intended result: a leaner set of regulations that, as described by the General Services Administration’s <a href="https://www.acquisition.gov/content/revolutionary-far-overhaul" target="_blank">Acquistion.gov</a>, returns the FAR “to its statutory roots, rewritten in plain language, and remove[s] most non-statutory rules.”  <ul><li>The Order directs OFPP to lead the FAR Council, the heads of agencies, and appropriate senior acquisition and procurement officials to “take appropriate actions” within 180 days to amend the FAR to ensure it contains “only provisions that are otherwise necessary to support simplicity and usability, strengthen the efficacy of the procurement system, or protect economic or national security interests.”  </li><li>Contractors may expect changes much sooner than in 180 days. Within 15 days, agencies are to “provide recommendations regarding any agency-specific supplemental regulations to the FAR.” Within 20 days, the Office of Management and Budget is to “propose new agency supplemental regulations and internal guidance” that promote expedited and streamlined acquisitions and instruct agencies, by memorandum, on the “implementation of this order.” In issuing new regulations, the Order directs agencies to “adhere to the ten-for-one” rule, issued in EO 14192, which requires rescinding 10 regulations for every new one promulgated. </li><li>New revisions will likely be implemented almost immediately upon release. OFPP and the FAR Council are to issue “deviation and interim guidance” even as the rule changes go through the notice-and-comment rulemaking process. This approach means the government will operate as if the revised FAR provisions were already final, in full force and effect, before the public has had an opportunity to weigh in. Restoration of improvidently removed text and the correction of other unintended consequences will have to wait for a final rule.</li><li>Finally, the Order mandates the consideration of sunset provisions for non-statutory requirements retained within the FAR. OFPP and the FAR Council are to identify all non-statutory FAR provisions not immediately removed, and to consider amending the FAR to automatically sunset all such provisions within four years, unless renewed by the FAR Counsel. Similarly, OFPP and the FAR Council shall consider extending the sunset provisions to any new provision not required by statute. In effect, if approved, many non-statutory provisions within the FAR will be subject to expiration every four years, unless renewed by the FAR Council.</li></ul>Key TakeawaysNo one can predict with guaranteed accuracy which exact regulations will be removed, modified, or kept in place, but recent procurement reform efforts suggest likely outcomes. By carving out regulations “essential to sound procurement” or “to support simplicity and usability, strengthen the efficacy of the procurement system, or protect economic or national security interests,” the Order allows retention of favorable or successful non-statutory provisions. We provide the following takeaways for contractors to consider as the government begins the process of overhauling the FAR.<ul><li>First, non-statutory clauses that are in the government’s interests are likely to remain. For example, the government’s power to terminate a contract for its convenience, a tool favored by the current administration, is very likely safe. As OFPP and the FAR Council review the FAR, even these regulations may be subject to streamlining to further protect the government’s interests. </li><li>Second, on the other-hand, non-statutory FAR clauses implementing social policies are very likely candidates for removal, especially those that FAR 52.212-5 requires to be inserted in contracts for commercial products and services. The Section 809 Panel, which the Order cites with approval, previously recommended the removal from commercial item contracting of those policy clauses that are derived from executive orders and agency policy or regulations. </li><li>Third, government contractors should keep a sharp eye out for class deviations that impact multiple contract actions that are issued in the interim period between now and the promulgation of final rules. Such deviations may provide the first notice of specific FAR revisions. Keeping up with these class deviations will aid contractors as they identify new contracting opportunities. </li><li>Fourth, until the government renegotiates or terminates existing contracts, contractors must continue to comply with their obligations as written in their contracts. Even class deviations, unless imposed through a contract modification, are not automatically retroactive in effect. As for the non-statutory provisions subject to the sunsetting, even if those provisions come to expire during a contract’s period of performance, the terms of the contract are likely to prevail over the broader regulations (unless the contract is modified to remove a dead clause). Contractors should therefore remain compliant with the terms of their contract, even if certain provisions are no longer in the FAR or set to expire.</li></ul>Government contracting is set to change. We’ve previously analyzed other recent executive actions and their likely effects on government contractors, including those related to <a href="https://govcon.mofo.com/topics/deregulating-federal-procurement-implications-of-three-recent-executive-actions" target="_blank">deregulation</a> and <a href="https://govcon.mofo.com/topics/deja-vu-all-over-again-trump-s-tariffs-and-their-impact-on-government-contractors" target="_blank">tariffs</a>, and will continue to do so.

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Markus Speidel is an associate in Morrison & Foerster’s Government Contracts & Public Procurement group, in Washington, D.C. Markus assists clients across a wide range of contract matters, including contract claims and disputes, bid protests, compliance counseling, and investigations.

Markus Gerhard Speidel

Markus Speidel

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Thomas Lee

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The Administration signed two Executive Orders (EOs or “Orders”) and one Presidential Memorandum (“Memo”) on April 9, 2025, that aim to make federal procurements faster and more efficient: <ol class="li-text-orange"><li class="li-text-orange"><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/modernizing-defense-acquisitions-and-spurring-innovation-in-the-defense-industrial-base/" target="_blank">Modernizing Defense Acquisitions and Spurring Innovation in the Defense Industrial Base</a></li><li><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/reforming-foreign-defense-sales-to-improve-speed-and-accountability/" target="_blank">Reforming Foreign Defense Sales to Improve Speed and Accountability</a></li><li><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/directing-the-repeal-of-unlawful-regulations/" target="_blank">Directing the Repeal of Unlawful Regulations</a></li></ol>This article delves into the details of each EO and the Memo to explore their potential effects on federal contractors.<a href="#_ftn1">[1]</a>Modernizing Defense AcquisitionsThe EO titled “Modernizing Defense Acquisitions and Spurring Innovation in the Defense Industrial Base” is likely of greatest interest to defense contractors. In a move to modernize the United States’ defense acquisition processes, the Order directs several key reforms.First, the Order establishes “speed, flexibility, and execution” as the hallmarks of the government’s defense procurement policy, with the express intent to “incentivize and reward risk-taking and innovation” by the defense acquisition workforce. Second, the Order directs the Secretary of Defense to submit a plan to “reform the Department of Defense’s acquisition processes” within 60 days. The plan, to the “maximum extent possible,” shall:<ul><li>Immediately prioritize a “first preference” for commercial solutions and a “general preference” for Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreements, Rapid Capabilities Office policies, and any other Adaptive Acquisition Framework authority or pathway. The preferences apply to all “pending” contracting actions and those “pursued” during the formulation and consideration of the acquisition reform plan;</li><li>Include a detailed process review of “each functional support role” within the acquisition workforce, including program managers, contracting officers, cost estimators, and others; and</li><li>Establish a formal “Configuration Steering Board” to effectively manage risk.</li></ul>Third, the Department of Defense (DoD) must review and propose revisions to its instructions, implementation guides, manuals, and regulations, including the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS).<ul><li>The review is focused on eliminating or revising unnecessary regulations or guidance, with the DFARS and the Financial Management Regulation specifically identified.</li><li>Going forward, the Defense Secretary is directed to follow the “ten-for-one” rule (as described in EO 14192): for every new regulation added, ten must be deleted. </li></ul>Fourth, within 120 days, DoD is directed to develop a plan to reform, right-size, and train the acquisition workforce.<ul><li>Most notably, the EO directs the use of performance evaluations for acquisition workforce personnel based on their ability to “demonstrate and apply” a first consideration of commercial solutions, adaptive acquisition pathways through the Adaptive Acquisition Framework, and requirements “based on the perspective of the end user.” </li><li>Moreover, the EO mandates “policies, procedures, and tools” to incentivize acquisition officials to take “measured and calculated risks.”</li></ul>Fifth, within 90 days, DoD must conduct a comprehensive review of all Major Defense Acquisition Programs (MDAPs), defined as programs with significant budgets.<ul><li>All MDAPs will be scrutinized for consistency with the new policy, emphasizing speed, flexibility, and execution. Programs exceeding cost or schedule thresholds may face cancellation, prompting contractors to ensure rigorous project management and adherence to timelines.</li><li>Programs more than 15% over budget or more than 15% behind schedule are expressly targeted for review and potential cancellation. This is a more stringent version of the Nunn-McCurdy breach review process that already exists in statute.</li></ul>For contractors, these reforms signal a shift toward a more commercially focused defense acquisition environment. There is a notable emphasis on speed, innovation, and acceptance of risk that will inform pending and future procurements.Reforming Foreign Defense SalesThe second EO seeks to achieve a “rapid and transparent foreign defense sales system.” This order introduces several new measures.First, it announces the administration’s key policies, including improving accountability and transparency, consolidating parallel decision-making, reducing rules and regulations, increasing government-industry collaboration, and advancing the United States’ competitiveness abroad.Second, the Order requires DoD and the State Department to implement the National Security Presidential Memorandum 10 of April 19, 2018 (“United States Conventional Arms Transfer Policy”), and successor policy directives. Additionally, the agencies are directed to:<ul><li>Reevaluate restrictions imposed by the Missile Technology Control Regime on Category I items, including considering supplying certain partners with these items.</li><li>Submit a proposal to Congress to add an update to statutory congressional certification thresholds for proposed sales under the FMS and Direct Commercial Sales (DCS) programs in the Arms Export Control Act.</li></ul>Third, within 60 days of the Order, DoD and the State Department must develop a list of priority partners for conventional arms transfers and issue updated guidance regarding the list, develop a list of priority end-items for potential transfer to priority partners, and review, update, and reissue the lists of priority partners and military end-items on an annual basis.Fourth, within 90 days, DoD, the State Department, and the Commerce Department must submit a plan to improve the transparency of United States defense sales to foreign partners by developing metrics for accountability; secure exportability as a requirement in the early stages of the acquisition process; and consolidate technology security and foreign disclosure approvals.For contractors, this order represents a concerted effort to streamline foreign defense sales, potentially leading to more engagements and more predictability in those engagements with international partners.Memo for the Repeal of Unlawful RegulationsThe Memo, which builds on EO 14219, Ensuring Lawful Governance and Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Deregulatory Initiative, directs agencies to prioritize their deregulatory efforts in line with 10 Supreme Court cases. The EO established a 60-day review period for agencies to identify certain categories of unlawful and potentially unlawful regulations. That 60-day period will end on April 20, 2025.Once that review period is completed, the Memo directs agencies to repeal “facially unlawful regulations” immediately and without notice-and-comment rulemaking under the “good cause” exception in the Administrative Procedure Act. Within 30 days of the review period’s conclusion, agencies must submit a one-page summary to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of each regulation not targeted for repeal despite being initially identified as within the EO’s scope of review.   The Fact Sheet accompanying the Memo summarizes each Supreme Court case and its relevance to the administration’s deregulatory efforts. Three cases stand out for their potential implications for federal procurement and, by extension, for government contractors:<ul><li>Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, 603 U.S. 369 (2024) ­­­– Agencies are directed to repeal any regulation that is either not consonant with the “single, best meaning” of the statute authorizing it or that was promulgated in reliance on the Chevron doctrine and that could be defended only by relying on Chevron deference.</li><li>West Virginia v. EPA, 597 U.S. 697 (2022) – Agencies are directed to repeal any regulation promulgated in violation of the Major Questions Doctrine as they cannot claim to discover vast delegations of power on an important issue in a statutory text that doesn’t clearly provide such authority. </li><li>Michigan v. EPA, 576 U.S. 743 (2015) – Agencies are directed to repeal any regulation where the “costs imposed are not justified by the public benefits,” or where such an analysis was never conducted to begin with because the Administrative Procedure Act requires agencies to properly consider the cost as well as the benefits in promulgating regulations.</li></ul>The decisions as interpreted by the Memo provide agencies with broad powers to deregulate. It is too soon to say how agencies will respond, and which regulations will be cut, but taken apace with the efforts to rewrite the Federal Acquisition Regulation, federal procurement appears poised for sweeping changes. Overall, these Executive Orders and the Memo reflect an effort to improve efficiency and foster innovation. At the same time, the Orders indicate that a wave of changes may be forthcoming, and contractors should be continuously monitoring for updates. Contractors should be sure they understand the changes, consider providing their own views to the relevant agencies, and be prepared to adapt to the changes once they are finalized.<a href="#_ftnref1">[1]</a>We separately analyze the April 15 EO, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement, which calls for a previously <a href="/topics/far-overhaul-underway" target="_self">predicted</a> FAR overhaul.

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Cody Brianna Fisher

Cody Fisher

The <a href="https://www.acquisition.gov/" target="_blank">Federal Acquisition Regulation</a>, initially issued on April 1, 1984, appears poised to be rewritten. Several online sources reference a GSA announcement posted on Friday, April 4, that supposedly heralded a bottom-up rewrite of the regulation to streamline acquisition. Unfortunately, the <a href="https://acquisition-staging.gsa.gov/far-overhaul">link</a> provided across the sources seems inoperable. The sources suggest a forthcoming executive order will direct OFPP to take the lead in simplifying the regulatory framework, keeping only what is essential and required by statute and removing outdated content from the FAR. At least one source suggests the overhaul will proceed in two phases, with the first phase focused on revising each FAR part immediately available through issuance of class deviations (April 2025–October 2025). The second phase seemingly will finalize the new FAR through formal notice and comment rulemaking (October 2025, on). Non-regulatory content will be moved to “buying guides” to support smarter, faster acquisitions aligned with the simplified FAR. The last significant revision of the FAR by executive order dates to the Clinton administration and involved revising Part 15, Contracting by Negotiation, which took four years to proceed from <a href="https://www.archives.gov/files/federal-register/executive-orders/pdf/12866.pdf" target="_blank">executive order</a> to <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1997-09-30/pdf/97-25666.pdf" target="_blank">final rule</a>.Read our full article on the <a href="/topics/far-reform-now-underway" target="_self">FAR Reform Now Underway</a> for a breakdown of the current administration’s efforts to reform the Federal Acquisition Regulation and the potential implications for government contractors.

Anser Advisory

ARKA

Arlington Capital

Battle Investment Group

Behrman Capital

Cadmus

Chainalysis

CollabraLink

Definitive Logic

Emmes

Enlightenment Capital

Grant Thornton

Griffon Corporation

eTelligent

L3Harris

Jacobs

LinQuest Corporation

Micross

Sagewind

Sedgwick

Sigma Defense

teKnoluxion

The Building People

VariQ

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Damien is a partner in the firm’s Government Contracts & Public Procurement practice. He represents clients in all facets of government contracts transactions, as well as regulatory counseling, subcon

Damien Specht

Damien C. Specht

Jim Tucker is of counsel in Morrison & Foerster’s Government Contracts and Public Procurement Practice Group and is based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office.
Jim’s practice runs the gamut of litiga

FAR Overhaul Predicted

The incoming Trump administration has sent many signals that it intends to ramp up the Department of Defense’s use of nontraditional acquisition pathways to bridge the “Valley of Death” and bring innovative technologies to the warfighter.<a href="#_ftn1">[1]</a> This is not a departure from any recent administration, but yet another acceleration of a common trend. Perhaps the most familiar and well‑demonstrated such pathway is DoD’s Other Transactions (OTs) for prototyping projects and follow‑on production efforts. In the last decade, DoD’s use of that authority has steadily grown from a few hundred OTs and less than $1 billion in obligations in FY15<a href="#_ftn2">[2]</a> to more than 5,000 OTs and $15.5 billion in FY23.<a href="#_ftn3">[3]</a> Early reports for FY24 indicate nearly $18 billion in OT obligations.<a href="#_ftn4">[4]</a>Defense contractors need to be armed with reliable legal resources as they navigate this relatively new and evolving legal landscape. That is why we are compiling here our DoD OTs Desk Reference, with an infographic answering common questions and links to our many writings on the rules and risks of contracting through OTs. Bear in mind, although these references often focus on DoD Prototype OTs, several non-DoD agencies—including NASA, NIH, BARDA, DHS, TSA, and others—have some form of other transaction authority of their own. These agencies issue a variety of other transaction agreements (OTAs) that are likewise exempt from procurement laws and regulations, but are not subject to the same eligibility or other legal requirements of DoD Prototype OTs. <div data-reactroot=""><img class="rich-text-embed-image" alt="250214-dod-other-transactions-ots-desk-reference.jpg" src="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/images/blt5775cc69c999c255/blt2bf1c4469e957df8/67b4ea3d495942e653d0e19c/250214-dod-other-transactions-ots-desk-reference.jpg?format=auto&amp;quality=60"/></div>References:<a href="/topics/other-transaction-ot-bid-protests-a-call-for-clarity-and-consistency" target="_self">Other Transaction (OT) Bid Protests: A Call for Clarity and Consistency</a><a href="/topics/dod-dusts-off-other-transactions-ot-regulations" target="_self">DoD Dusts Off Other Transactions (OT) Regulations</a><a href="/topics/court-of-federal-claims-potentially-expands-its-other-transaction-ot-bid-protest-jurisdiction" target="_self">Court of Federal Claims Potentially Expands Its Other Transaction (OT) Bid Protest Jurisdiction</a><a href="/topics/gao-opens-the-door-to-certain-other-transaction-bid-protests" target="_self">Has the GAO Opened the Door to Certain Other Transaction (OT) Bid Protests?</a><a href="/topics/dod-issues-updated-other-transactions-ot-guide" target="_self">DoD Issues Updated Other Transactions (OT) Guide</a><a href="/topics/another-piece-to-the-puzzle-court-of-federal-claims-has-jurisdiction-over-bid-protest-where-the-disputed-other-transaction-could-lead-to-a-follow-on-production-contract" target="_self">Another Piece to the Puzzle: Court of Federal Claims Has Jurisdiction Over Bid Protest Where the Disputed Other Transaction Could Lead to a Follow-On Production Contract</a><a href="https://www.mofo.com/resources/insights/211015-new-contractor-insights" target="_blank">New Contractor Insights on ‘Other Transaction’ Bid Protests</a><a href="/topics/where-can-you-protest-an-other-transaction-award-insights-from-kinemetrics" target="_self">Where Can You Protest an Other Transaction Award? Insights from Kinemetrics</a><a href="/topics/congress-dod-encourage-use-of-other-transaction-authority-in-response-to-covid-19" target="_self">Congress, DoD Encourage Use of Other Transaction Authority in Response to COVID-19</a><a href="/topics/dods-other-transactions-data-rights-intellectual-property-simplified" target="_self">DoD’s Other Transactions: Data Rights & Intellectual Property Simplified</a><a href="#_ftnref1">[1]</a> See, e.g., Pete Hegseth, Opening Statement, Secretary of Defense Nomination Hearing, Senate Armed Services Committee (Jan. 14, 2025), available at <a href="https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/hegseth_opening_statement.pdf">https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/hegseth_opening_statement.pdf</a>.<a href="#_ftnref2">[2]</a> See Rhys McCormick, Ctr. for Strategic & Int’l Studies, Department of Defense Other Transaction Authority Trends 2 (Dec. 2020)<a href="#_ftnref3">[3]</a>See <a href="https://oldcc.gov/sites/default/files/resources/OT%20General%20Presentation%20%28July%202024%29.pdf">https://oldcc.gov/sites/default/files/resources/OT%20General%20Presentation%20%28July%202024%29.pdf</a>.<a href="#_ftnref4">[4]</a> See <a href="https://www.acq.osd.mil/asda/dpc/cp/policy/docs/newsletters/2024/Policy_Pulse_Newsletter_(Nov_2024).pdf">https://www.acq.osd.mil/asda/dpc/cp/policy/docs/newsletters/2024/Policy_Pulse_Newsletter_(Nov_2024).pdf</a>.

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Locke Bell is a partner in the firm’s Government Contracts & Public Procurement practice.

Locke Bell

Tina is a partner in Morrison & Foerster’s Government Contracts practice. She represents a wide variety of government contractors including information technology, defense, biotechnology, and pharmace

Tina Reynolds

DoD Other Transactions (OTs) Desk Reference