By Nicole Wolfe on October 27, 2021 | Posted in Bid Protests
If you reasonably believe the awardee of a small business set-aside is really a large business, then you can file a Small Business Administration (“SBA”) size protest. The federal government reserves a portion of its procurement dollars for purchasing products or services from small businesses. These set-asides help small businesses compete for federal government contracts. Not surprisingly, however, some businesses who are initially awarded these contracts are actually large businesses posing as small business concerns. A size protest presents a quick and economical option to challenge the award to such a large business.
By Howard W. Roth on October 26, 2021 | Posted in Bid Protests
Choosing the correct forum is the first step in winning a bid protest. Both the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and U.S. Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”) have unique advantages and disadvantages. Knowing which forum is likely to yield the best results is imperative. This post aims to advise when and why a protester should file a bid protest at the GAO.
By Howard W. Roth on September 9, 2021 | Posted in Bid Protests
[Return to Oles Morrison Bid Protest Practice] A Concise Guide to Bid Protests at the Court of Federal Claims Government contractors have three options for bid protests, file a protest directly with the contracting agency, file a protest with the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”), or file a complaint with the […]
By Oles Morrison on April 12, 2021 | Posted in Bid Protests
Protests are an important weapon in a contractor’s arsenal, whether as a successful awardee or disappointed bidder, contractor’s must understand the bid protest process to successfully defend their rights to full and open competition as a protester or defend their contract awards from protest. We will cover these key points: […]
By Oles Morrison on March 10, 2021 | Posted in Bid Protests
Last April, the Court of Federal Claims issued a decision in NIKA Technologies, Inc. vs. United States telling potential protestors that they had an extra two days to file a protest under the enhanced Department of Defense (DoD) debriefing process. Last month, the Federal Circuit reversed that ruling. Under the […]
By Howard W. Roth on February 11, 2020 | Posted in Bid Protests
What do you do when the Agency has made a mistake in the solicitation for a contract requirement or not selected your company for award of the contract? Most contractors think of filing a protest to Government Accountability Office (GAO) or the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) and therefore do not avail themselves of the secret weapon in bid protests—an agency protest.
Smart contractors utilize agency protests which are, cheaper, quicker, not revealed to other offerors, and have little downside on pre-award issues. While there are risks, an agency protest provides another protest weapon to gain an edge for a contractor in the fight for contracts.
By Oles Morrison on November 26, 2019 | Posted in Bid Protests
On Halloween Day of 2019, President Trump signed Executive Order 13897, titled “Improving Federal Contractor Operations by Revoking Executive Order 13495.” (84 Fed. Reg. 59709 (Oct. 31, 2019)). This Order revoked, effective immediately, Executive Order 13495 on “Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts,” which was issued by President Obama. […]
GAO Says Contractors Must “Diligently Pursue” Agency Debriefing or Potentially Lose Right to Protest
By Oles Morrison on November 8, 2019 | Posted in Bid Protests
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently issued a decision holding that a bidder’s failure to “diligently pursue” its request for a debriefing rendered its protest untimely. GAO’s bid protest regulations are strict about the time in which a contractor can file a protest. If the protest is alleging improprieties in […]
By Oles Morrison on February 5, 2019 | Posted in Bid Protests
The Section 809 Panel, which is tasked with developing and providing recommendations to improve and enhance the efficiency of the Department of Defense procurement system, issued the third volume of its report and recommendations Jan. 15, 2019. Among the numerous recommendations for streamlining DoD acquisitions, several of which relate to […]
By Oles Morrison on December 4, 2018 | Posted in Bid Protests
If you bid, but lost out, on a solicitation issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), you may be thinking of filing a protest to challenge the award. However, FAA procurements are unique in the sense that protests of such procurements are not decided by either the U.S. Government Accountability […]
By Oles Morrison on October 23, 2018 | Posted in Bid Protests
It is not uncommon for government contractors to have one or more related companies (e.g., parent/subsidiary companies) involved in the industry. One way the government keeps track of such related entities is to utilize Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) codes. These codes are used for a variety of purposes, including facility clearances. […]
By Oles Morrison on September 11, 2018 | Posted in Bid Protests
Join Oles Morrison partner Adam Lasky for Road Map to Federal Bid Protests, a webinar presented by the Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition (PNDC), on Monday, September 17, 2018, from 11:00AM – 12:15PM PDT. This webinar will provide contractors a look behind the curtain at GAO and U.S. Court of Federal Claims bid protests. Attendees will leave with […]
By Oles Morrison on September 4, 2018 | Posted in Bid Protests
Many politically charged issues are likely to steal the headlines during the confirmation hearings for President Trump’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Brett Kavanaugh. However, one issue unlikely to make headlines is the impact that Judge Kavanaugh’s confirmation may have on the doctrine […]
By Oles Morrison on June 11, 2018 | Posted in Bid Protests
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 […]
By Oles Morrison on April 27, 2018 | Posted in Bid Protests
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 […]