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Government Contracts

  • April 15, 2025

    Trump Orders Overhaul Of Federal Contracting Rules

    President Donald Trump issued orders Tuesday aimed at simplifying and reducing the costs of federal contracting for both government and contractors, directing agencies to pare back the Federal Acquisition Regulation to only "essential" requirements and to prioritize commercial item purchases.

  • April 15, 2025

    Judge Ends 'China Initiative' Prosecution Of Ex-Ga. Tech Prof

    A federal judge has dismissed the last remaining criminal charges against a former Georgia Tech professor who was indicted more than four years ago over allegations he was helping Chinese tech workers come to the U.S. under the guise of being university-affiliated researchers.

  • April 15, 2025

    Chase Says Fla. Biz Playing Games With NY 'Debanking' Suit

    JPMorgan Chase Bank NA wants a case accusing it of "debanking" a Florida company sent to the Sunshine State, arguing that it has already won at least one nearly identical suit there and that the company's attempt to bring the current action in New York is a transparent attempt at forum shopping.

  • April 15, 2025

    Judge Won't Hit Brakes On Army Helicopter Power Unit Award

    A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge has rejected Hydraulics International Inc.'s attempt to block a sole-source award to Sun Test Systems Inc. for power units to service Army helicopters, saying the company failed to show it could deliver the equipment in question.

  • April 15, 2025

    Plane Part Cos. Settle For $1.3M Over False Small Biz Claims

    Two airplane parts manufacturers will pay more than $1.3 million after disclosing under the False Claims Act that they no longer qualified for federal contracts set aside for small businesses, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut.

  • April 15, 2025

    Journalists, Unions Fight VOA Shutdown In DC Federal Court

    A coalition of journalists, unions and a reporter advocacy group asked a D.C. federal judge not to disturb a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration from dismantling the agency that oversees Voice of America, arguing the district court has jurisdiction to weigh in on the case.

  • April 15, 2025

    NJ Judicial Privacy Law Is Unconstitutional, 3rd Circ. Told

    A group of data brokers told the Third Circuit that the New Jersey judicial privacy measure, Daniel's Law, is facially unconstitutional and that a federal district judge effectively "rewrote" it when he found otherwise.

  • April 15, 2025

    DC Maintains, Expands Tax Exemptions For NBA, NHL Arena

    The District of Columbia maintained and expanded tax breaks for the property and airspace of Capital One Arena, home to the NBA's Washington Wizards and NHL's Washington Capitals, as part of legislation that became law, according to a notice published in the district's register.

  • April 15, 2025

    DOL Blocked From Forcing Contractors To Swear Off DEI

    The U.S. Department of Labor cannot force federal funding recipients to certify that they don't operate programs that violate recent executive orders targeting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, an Illinois federal judge held, saying President Donald Trump's directive likely violates the First Amendment.

  • April 14, 2025

    Judge Vacates €978M Army Security Services Contract

    A Court of Federal Claims judge scrapped a €978.6 million ($1.02 billion) contract awarded by the U.S. Army for armed security services for installations in Germany, saying the agency relied on unstated evaluation criteria for past performance.

  • April 14, 2025

    9th Circ. Says $24M Punitive Damages In Jail Death Too Steep

    A jury correctly determined that a healthcare contractor was liable for the death of a woman in custody in a Washington jail, a split Ninth Circuit panel ruled Monday, but its $24 million award for punitive damages was excessive.

  • April 14, 2025

    Judge Backs Air Force In Drone Pilot Contract Dispute

    A Court of Federal Claims judge said the U.S. Air Force reasonably excluded two companies from competing for a contract to train drone pilots, after they failed to certify themselves as women-owned small businesses in the system for award management as required.

  • April 14, 2025

    Calif. Board Says SpaceX Suit Should Be Grounded For Good

    The California Coastal Commission moved Friday for another dismissal of SpaceX's suit alleging the commission wrongly tried to block its plan to increase rocket launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, saying because the commission's opposition was overridden by the U.S. Air Force, no harm was caused.

  • April 14, 2025

    Quinn Emanuel, King & Spalding Rep Harvard In Trump Letter

    Harvard University on Monday turned to a pair of high-powered lawyers from Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP and King & Spalding LLP as the school pushed back on the Trump administration's policy demands linked to nearly $9 billion in federal funding — a move that prompted the government to freeze more than $2 billion in grants for the school.

  • April 14, 2025

    Top Court Ruling Dooms Suit Challenging Housing Grant Cuts

    A federal judge in Boston on Monday vacated an earlier ruling that had blocked the Trump administration from cutting $30 million in housing anti-discrimination grants, saying a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in a similar case involving teacher training grants likely strips the court of jurisdiction.

  • April 14, 2025

    V&E Makes Perkins Coie Atty Gov't Contracts Group Co-Head

    Vinson & Elkins LLP has hired a partner from Perkins Coie LLP who is joining V&E's litigation practice and will co-head the firm's government contracts practice, the firm announced Monday.

  • April 11, 2025

    21 AGs Back WilmerHale, Jenner & Block Over Trump Order

    A coalition of 21 attorneys general Friday filed briefs in support of WilmerHale and Jenner & Block LLP as the firms challenge President Donald Trump's retaliatory executive orders in D.C. federal court, arguing that the directives unconstitutionally punish the firms for representing people and causes the president doesn't like.

  • April 11, 2025

    Tool Co. Can't Yet Defeat Former Worker's FCA Claims

    A Georgia federal judge on Friday refused to hand a partial win to Kipper Tool Co. as it battles a False Claims Act suit brought by a former employee, rejecting the company's argument that a portion of the suit is barred by the statute of limitations.

  • April 11, 2025

    GAO Backs Feds' Setback, Co-Location Terms In Lease Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office said the General Services Administration reasonably set colocation and setback requirements in a request for lease proposals to house several agencies in one Wilmington, North Carolina, building, denying a protest that challenged the terms as unnecessary and overly restrictive.

  • April 11, 2025

    ÃÛÌÒÊÓÆµ Cuts Loose Comerica Suit After Missing Filing Deadline

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Friday dismissed at least for now its suit against Comerica Bank in Texas federal court that accused the bank of mismanaging a government benefit card program after missing a filing deadline and losing out on a bid to have the action stayed.

  • April 11, 2025

    Feds Say Judge Should Limit Foreign Aid Freeze Injunction

    The Trump administration asked a D.C. federal judge on Friday to commit to dissolving part of a preliminary injunction requiring it to pay all grant recipients and contractors for foreign assistance work done prior to Feb. 13, in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

  • April 11, 2025

    DOGE, OMB Ordered To Ready 1,000s Of Pages In FOIA Suit

    A D.C. federal judge ordered the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Government Efficiency to start processing 1,000 pages of documents per month to potentially hand over to a watchdog group seeking insight into DOGE's "secretive operations," saying DOGE's actions were of "highest national concern."

  • April 11, 2025

    Construction Firm Pushes For $31M Award Against Guatemala

    A construction and engineering firm has argued a magistrate judge correctly recommended enforcement of $31 million in arbitral awards against Guatemala in D.C. federal court, saying the court is the appropriate forum for the case.

  • April 11, 2025

    Kansas City Bank Tries To Sink Ex-Detainees' Debit Fee Case

    Central Bank of Kansas City said Friday that a Washington federal judge should toss a class action from former inmates and detainees who said they were charged illegal debit card fees to regain access to money that was confiscated from them, arguing the lead plaintiff requested his card and knew how to avoid the fees.

  • April 11, 2025

    Permit Suit Can't Sidestep ICE's Immunity, GEO Group Says

    GEO Group Inc. told a New Jersey federal judge that the city of Newark's lawsuit aiming to block development of an immigration detention facility over permitting and inspections can't proceed without naming U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a defendant.

Expert Analysis

  • A Novel Expansion Of Alien Tort Statute In 9th Circ.

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    The Ninth Circuit's Doe v. Cisco rehearing denial allows a new invocation of the Alien Tort Statute to proceed, which could capture the U.S. Supreme Court's attention, and has potentially dramatic consequences for U.S. companies doing business with foreign governments, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Empathy In Mediation Offers A Soft Landing For Disputes

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    Experiencing a crash-landing on a recent flight underscored to me how much difference empathy makes in times of crisis or stress, including during mediation, says Eydith Kaufman at Alternative Resolution Centers.

  • Series

    Being An Artist Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My work as an artist has highlighted how using creativity and precision together — qualities that are equally essential in both art and law — not only improves outcomes, but also leads to more innovative and thoughtful work, says Sarah La Pearl at Segal McCambridge.

  • How Judiciary Can Minimize AI Risks In Secondary Sources

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    Because courts’ standing orders on generative artificial intelligence and other safeguards do not address the risk of hallucinations in secondary source materials, the judiciary should consider enlisting legal publishers and database hosts to protect against AI-generated inaccuracies, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

  • How Attorneys Can Break Free From Career Enmeshment

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    Ambitious attorneys can sometimes experience career enmeshment — when your sense of self-worth becomes unhealthily tangled up in your legal vocation — but taking the time to discover and realign with your core personal values can help you recover your identity, says Janna Koretz at Azimuth Psychological.

  • Suspension And Debarment: FY 2024 By The Numbers

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    The multiyear, downward trend in suspensions and debarments of government contractors continued in fiscal year 2024, largely fueled by a sharp decrease in exclusions of individuals — a welcome development that may indicate recognition that these actions can be more punitive than prophylactic, says David Robbins at Jenner & Block.

  • Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity

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    Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Committee Best Venue For Litigation Funding Rules

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    The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules' recent decision to consider developing a rule for litigation funding disclosure is a welcome development, ensuring that the result will be the product of a thorough, inclusive and deliberative process that appropriately balances all interests, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

  • The Strategic Advantages Of Appointing A Law Firm CEO

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    The impact on law firms of the recent CrowdStrike outage underscores that the business of law is no longer merely about providing supplemental support for legal practice — and helps explain why some law firms are appointing dedicated, full-time CEOs to navigate the challenges of the modern legal landscape, says Jennifer Johnson at Calibrate Strategies.

  • Why Diversity Jurisdiction Poses Investment Fund Hurdles

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    Federal courts' continued application of the exacting rules of diversity jurisdiction presents particular challenges for investment funds, and in the absence of any near-term reform, those who manage such funds should take action to avoid diversity jurisdiction pitfalls, say attorneys at Sher Tremonte.

  • Comments Show Need For Clarity On SBA Proposed Rule

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    The recent public comments period for the Small Business Administration's proposed rule on recertification and other regulations underscores the need for more precision, particularly on agreements in principle, which the SBA should address as it moves forward with this rulemaking, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Beekeeping Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The practice of patent law and beekeeping are not typically associated, but taking care of honeybees has enriched my legal practice by highlighting the importance of hands-on experience, continuous learning, mentorship and more, says David Longo at Oblon McClelland.

  • GAO Decision Offers Insights On Verifying TAA Compliance

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    The U.S. Government Accountability Office's August decision in Matter of: HPI Federal LLC serves as a reminder of the importance of verifying Trade Agreements Act compliance — and of understanding the parameters of an agency's acceptance of an offeror's TAA representation, say Amy Hoang and Sarah Barney at Seyfarth.

  • 3 Takeaways From Navy Shipbuilder's Fraud Guilty Plea

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    Austal USA’s recent plea agreement over accounting fraud charges highlights for other companies the benefits of cooperating with government investigations, the challenges posed by senior executives’ involvement in misconduct, and the high stakes for defense contractors, say Michael DeBernardis and Shayda Vance at Hughes Hubbard.

  • Opinion

    Legal Institutions Must Warn Against Phony Election Suits

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    With two weeks until the election, bar associations and courts have an urgent responsibility to warn lawyers about the consequences of filing unsubstantiated lawsuits claiming election fraud, says Elise Bean at the Carl Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy.

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