Government Contracts

  • May 24, 2024

    CFPB Seeks $20M Penalty For Inaccurate Loan Data

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has urged a Florida federal court to hit Freedom Mortgage with a $20 million civil penalty for allegedly submitting error-filled government mortgage loan data.

  • May 24, 2024

    Insurer Owes Coverage For School Defect Claim, Builder Says

    A general contractor told a Washington federal court it is entitled to coverage under a subcontractor's commercial general liability policy with a Liberty Mutual unit for defects and damage that a school district alleges was caused by the subcontractor while working on a school expansion project.

  • May 23, 2024

    Feds Ask 5th Circ. To Weigh Highway GHG Rule Vacatur

    The Biden administration has asked the Fifth Circuit to review a Texas district court's recent decision vacating a Federal Highway Administration rule that would've required states to set targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from federally funded highway projects.

  • May 23, 2024

    Joint Venture Says Defense Agency Errors Thwarted Contract

    An Alabama joint venture hauled the U.S. government into the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, alleging it was shut out of a Missile Defense Agency deal due to multiple errors the agency made when assessing the joint venture.

  • May 23, 2024

    NJ Justices Toss Direct Appeals Over Hospital Contract Bid

    The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled Thursday that an independent state-owned teaching hospital's conduct cannot be challenged directly in the state's intermediate appellate court because it isn't considered an administrative agency, affirming the dismissal of two protests over the hospital's selection of a pharmacy vendor.

  • May 23, 2024

    Bell, Boeing Face Suit Over Marines Killed In Osprey Crash

    The families of four of the five marines killed in the June 2022 crash of an Osprey V-22 aircraft sued Bell Textron Inc., The Boeing Co. and Rolls-Royce Corp. Thursday in California federal court, alleging defects in the aircraft led to the fatal crash.

  • May 23, 2024

    Lockheed Urges 11th Circ. To Affirm Win In Solvent Suit

    Lockheed Martin Corp. asked the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to uphold a Florida district court's rejection of a proposed expert's testimony purporting to link a now-deceased former employee's multiple sclerosis to her work-related exposure to industrial solvents.

  • May 23, 2024

    Army Corps Ordered To Award $5M Deal To Co. It Flipped On

    The U.S. Court of Federal Claims ordered the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to award a $5 million diving services deal to a company whose bid it irrationally rejected as unacceptable, despite initially finding the proposal acceptable.

  • May 23, 2024

    US Drops Appeal Of Citigroup's $183M Tax Award At Fed. Circ.

    The federal government agreed to stop fighting a ruling that awarded Citigroup $183 million in tax deductions for liabilities belonging to a failing bank it had acquired during the 1980s savings and loan crisis, according to an order Thursday by the Federal Circuit dismissing the appeal.

  • May 23, 2024

    Ambulance Co. Owner Accused Of $1M Pandemic Loan Fraud

    The owner of a California ambulance company who was charged last year with tax evasion and filing false returns has been further accused of fraudulently securing $1 million from federal pandemic relief loan programs, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

  • May 22, 2024

    China Sanctions 12 US Defense Firms For Taiwan Arms Sales

    China announced on Wednesday that it has issued sanctions against units of a dozen U.S. defense firms, including Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, plus several executives over sales of military weaponry and arms to Taiwan, three days after it sanctioned units of Boeing and General Atomics for similar reasons.

  • May 22, 2024

    Seattle Sues Train Cos. Over Bike Track-Crossing Suits

    The city of Seattle says two short-line railroads have breached agreements to maintain liability insurance and indemnify the city in lawsuits from cyclists injured crossing tracks along a perilous stretch of a popular bike trail, according to a complaint filed in Washington state court.

  • May 22, 2024

    Justices' CFPB Alliance May Save SEC Courts, Not Chevron

    A four-justice concurrence to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision upholding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's unique funding scheme last week carries implications for other cases pending before the court that challenge the so-called administrative state, or the permanent cadre of regulatory agencies and career government enforcers who hold sway over vast swaths of American economic life.

  • May 22, 2024

    Axon Says Deal Saved 'Vital' Services In Antitrust Case

    Axon Enterprise Inc. is looking to toss allegations that it monopolized the Taser and body-worn camera markets, arguing that its acquisition of a body camera supplier preserved vital services for police departments while a trio of municipalities said the deal resulted in higher prices.

  • May 22, 2024

    Assange Appeal May Put US Constitution In UK Crosshairs

    Julian Assange's latest appeal, in which he claims he would be denied free speech protection if he is put on trial in the U.S., could break new ground in extradition cases and end up having to be decided by Britain's highest court, legal experts say.

  • May 22, 2024

    3M Says Insurers Are Dodging Coverage Of $6B Earplug Deal

    3M and its subsidiary Aearo Technologies have reported difficulties getting their insurers to pay out more than $1.5 billion in coverage after the companies reached a $6 billion deal to settle multidistrict litigation alleging their combat earplugs failed to protect the hearing of service members and veterans.

  • May 22, 2024

    OSU Strikes Deal To Resolve Ex-Prof's Gender Bias Suit

    Ohio State University reached a tentative deal Wednesday with a former marketing professor to end her lawsuit accusing the school of firing her for working with outside clients while male colleagues escaped retribution, a notice in federal court said.

  • May 22, 2024

    5 'Fat Leonard' Bribery Pleas Axed Over Misconduct

    A California federal judge has agreed to toss felony plea deals for five former U.S. Navy officers who admitted they took bribes from the Malaysian defense contractor known as "Fat Leonard," after the government acknowledged prosecutorial missteps had tainted the high-profile case.

  • May 22, 2024

    NY Federal Reserve Associate GC Rejoins Covington

    A former Covington & Burling LLP associate who left the firm 13 years ago to join the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has returned to work as of counsel, the firm announced Tuesday.

  • May 22, 2024

    Mich. Judge Gives Final OK To Engineering Co. $8M Flint Deal

    A Michigan federal judge has granted final approval of an $8 million settlement between a civil engineering company and Flint, Michigan, residents, putting to rest claims the company failed to warn them of likely lead contamination that triggered a drinking water crisis in the city.

  • May 21, 2024

    Ship Engineers Take Case Against Shipbuilders To 4th Circ.

    A pair of naval engineers are challenging a Virginia federal judge's decision to toss their proposed class action accusing a collection of shipbuilding military contractors of entering into secret "no-poach" agreements, asking the Fourth Circuit to take up their appeal in a new filing.

  • May 21, 2024

    Groups Push For Official USMCA Interpretation To Nix Claims

    Nearly three dozen left-leaning groups are urging North American trade officials to issue an official interpretation of a disputed provision in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which they say could help nix claims seeking billions of dollars that are pending against all three countries.

  • May 21, 2024

    NY High Court Upholds State Abortion Coverage Mandate

    New York's highest court on Tuesday upheld a state law requiring employee health plans to cover medically necessary abortions, finding a 2021 U.S. Supreme Court decision didn't change the state court's determination that an exemption process in the law was constitutional.

  • May 21, 2024

    AT&T Unit Asks High Court To Take Up E-Rate FCA Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court needs to step in and decide a circuit split over whether FCC reimbursements under the E-rate program count as "claims" under the False Claims Act, said an AT&T subsidiary, urging the justices to ignore a relator who it said is trying to "muddy that clear conflict."

  • May 21, 2024

    GAO Denies Sysco's Protest Of Up-To $126M Subsistence Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office denied a Sysco unit's protest of an up-to $126 million defense subsistence supply deal, saying the company failed to show the Defense Logistics Agency had to consider the awardee's performance on a similar interim deal.

Expert Analysis

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

    Author Photo

    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • SolarWinds Ushers In New Era Of SEC Cyber Enforcement

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent lawsuit against software company SolarWinds Corp. and its chief information security officer is the first time the SEC has ever filed suit over scienter-based fraud involving cybersecurity failures, illustrating that both companies and CISOs need to be extra cautious in how they describe their cybersecurity practices, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Instructions, Jurisdiction, Scrutiny

    Author Photo

    In this month's bid protest roundup, Michaela Thornton at MoFo examines three recent protests resolved in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. Government Accountability Office that arose from indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract awards and offer important reminders about the fundamentals of procurement law.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

    Author Photo

    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • A Look At Successful Bid Protests In FY 2023

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at Sheppard Mullin look beyond the statistics in the U.S. Government Accountability Office’s recent annual report on bid protests, sharing their insights about nine categories of sustained protests, gained from reading every fiscal year 2023 decision in which the protester had a positive result.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

    Author Photo

    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

    Author Photo

    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • AI Use May Trigger False Claims Act's Public Disclosure Bar

    Author Photo

    The likely use of publicly available artificial intelligence tools to detect government fraud by combing through large data sets will raise complex questions about a False Claims Act provision that prohibits the filing of claims based on previously disclosed information, say Nick Peterson and Spencer Brooks at Wiley Rein.

  • Biden Climate Push Expands With Contractor GHG Focus

    Author Photo

    President Joe Biden's recent announcement that federal agencies will consider contractors' greenhouse gas emissions when making procurement decisions demonstrates his administration's continued interest in using government contracting as a vehicle for reducing climate-related impacts — a theme first established in the early months of his term, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.

  • Unpacking GAO's FY 2023 Bid Protest Report

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office's recent bid protest report reflects an increase in sustained protests, illustrating that disappointed offerors may see little reason to refrain from seeking corrective action — but there is more to the story, say Aron Beezley and Patrick Quigley at Bradley Arant.

  • How Biden's AI Order Stacks Up Against Calif. And G7 Activity

    Author Photo

    Evaluating the federal AI executive order alongside the California AI executive order and the G7's Hiroshima AI Code of Conduct can offer a more robust picture of key risks and concerns companies should proactively work to mitigate as they build or integrate artificial intelligence tools into their products and services, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • A Closer Look At Proposed HHS Research Misconduct Rule

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' proposed updates to its policies on research misconduct codify many well-known best practices, but also contain some potential surprises for the research community and counsel, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

  • Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence

    Author Photo

    Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Suspension And Debarment: FY 2023 By The Numbers

    Author Photo

    A comparative analysis of System for Award Management data, culminating with fiscal year 2023, reveals a year-over-year drop in annual suspension and debarment numbers so significant as to leave the government contracting community trying to figure out what is happening, says David Robbins at Jenner & Block.

  • Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes

    Author Photo

    Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Government Contracts archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!