Government Contracts

  • August 29, 2024

    Under-The-Radar Gov't Contracts Cases: Midyear Report

    Alongside blockbuster rulings so far this year shaking up the federal contracting landscape are lower-profile decisions with noteworthy legal outcomes, addressing issues such as when late submissions matter, when they don't, and whether local wage requirements can affect federal contracts. Here are four lower-profile decisions from the first half of 2024 with significant legal findings that could impact federal contractors.

  • August 28, 2024

    CVS Can't Avoid Federal Claims In $200M FCA Suit

    A former CVS Health compliance director can pursue claims the company and its subsidiaries pocketed more than $200 million in overpayments, after an Illinois federal judge on Monday tossed several other claims from a qui tam suit alleging various schemes by CVS to take money from the government.

  • August 28, 2024

    Contractor Drops Fed. Circ. Challenge To Registration Rule

    The federal government and a joint venture on Wednesday agreed to end a Federal Circuit appeal that questioned whether the U.S. State Department unfairly disqualified the company from a security contract over its failure to register on the contracting database.

  • August 28, 2024

    Cooley, Latham Steer Defense Co.'s $80M VC Funding Round

    Parry Labs announced Wednesday that the Virginia-based defense technology company, represented by Cooley LLP, has raised $80 million in its first institutional investment round fueled by Capitol Meridian Partners, represented by Latham & Watkins LLP, and other venture capital firms.

  • August 28, 2024

    Mont. Hospital Pays $11M In FCA Case For Doc's Fake Billing

    Nonprofit healthcare center St. Peter's Health will pay nearly $11 million to settle alleged False Claims Act violations stemming from conduct by a former oncology doctor who submitted fraudulent claims to government programs for up-coded cancer treatment services and who double-billed office visits to boost his own salary, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Montana.

  • August 28, 2024

    Atlanta's Ex-CFO Gets 3 Years For 'Triple-Dipping' In Coffers

    Atlanta's former chief financial officer became the latest city hall official to head to prison on corruption charges Tuesday, after getting hit with a three-year prison sentence for what prosecutors called a "triple-dipping" scheme into city coffers to pay for swanky vacations and illegal firearms.

  • August 28, 2024

    Conn. Dental Practices Settle False Claims Case For $1.7M

    Three dental practices in Connecticut and their owners have paid a $1.7 million settlement after federal and state authorities accused them of using an illegal patient recruiting tactic and paying kickbacks that ripped off Medicaid.

  • August 28, 2024

    Top Gov't Contracts Cases To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2024

    Federal courts in the latter half of 2024 are expected to scrutinize a strict federal registration requirement for contractors and decide whether whistleblower False Claims Act cases are constitutional, potentially affecting a key federal anti-fraud tool. Here, Law360 previews key disputes that government contractors should have on their radar in the second half of the year.

  • August 27, 2024

    Navy Shipbuilder Pleads Guilty To Accounting Fraud

    A shipbuilder that contracts with the U.S. Navy pled guilty Tuesday to accounting fraud as part of a settlement to resolve criminal and civil investigations.

  • August 27, 2024

    Bank Seeks To End Claims It Mismanaged Treasury Program

    A bank is seeking to permanently dismiss a suit accusing it of misleading an investor about its oversight of a U.S. Department of Treasury contract, saying despite amending its case three times, the investor hasn't connected any sustained stock loss to contract issues.

  • August 27, 2024

    Admiral Seeks Bribery Trial Separate From Contractors

    A retired U.S. Navy admiral  accused of accepting bribes from two contractors is pushing a Washington, D.C., federal court to sever his trial from theirs, saying the pair appeared poised to pin any alleged misconduct on him.

  • August 27, 2024

    Return Of Venezuela Sanctions Reignites Criminal Probes

    Criminal investigations into Venezuela-related sanctions violations appear to be ramping back up since the U.S. government reimposed crushing trade penalties on the South American country's oil and gas sectors in response to an allegedly sham presidential election, according to experts.

  • August 27, 2024

    US Arrests Hungarian Suspected Of Sending Radios To Russia

    The U.S. Department of Justice announced criminal charges against a Hungarian national suspected to have run a multinational procurement network designed to help Russia obtain U.S. military-grade communications technology.

  • August 27, 2024

    Top Gov't Contract Cases Of 2024: Midyear Report

    Courts and appeals boards have decided several consequential cases impacting government contractors this year, including determining whether software end-user licenses are procurement contracts and weighing in on when companies can protest alleged violations of a federal preference for commercial items. Here, Law360 looks back at the top government contracts-related rulings in 2024 so far.

  • August 26, 2024

    LA To Pay $38.2M In FCA Suit Alleging Inaccessible Housing

    The city of Los Angeles will pay $38.2 million to settle allegations it knowingly failed, for over a decade, to ensure federally funded affordable multifamily housing properties were accessible to people with disabilities, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.

  • August 26, 2024

    Army Corps Looks To Trim Claims In Alaskan Gold Mine Row

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has told an Alaska federal judge that most of the claims asserted by a small village that's trying to thwart an open pit gold mine can't be supported and should be dismissed.

  • August 26, 2024

    Tetra Tech Accuses Atty Of Mistreating Witness In FCA Row

    Tetra Tech EC Inc. claimed that an attorney representing a developer accusing it of fraud had mistreated a witness during a deposition hearing, pressing a California federal court to order the release of recordings capturing the alleged misconduct.

  • August 26, 2024

    GAO Rejects EY Protest Over $108M DOD Accounting Deal

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office has denied Ernst & Young LLP's protest over a $107.8 million accounting services deal in support of U.S. Transportation Command, awarded to KPMG LLC, finding that the agency reasonably evaluated both companies' proposals.

  • August 26, 2024

    11th Circ. Won't Revive JPMorgan Chase Whistleblower Suit

    The Eleventh Circuit on Monday refused to revive a whistleblower suit against JPMorgan Chase Bank NA for allegedly forging mortgage loan documents and submitting false reimbursement claims to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, finding the allegations had already been publicized prior to the lawsuit.

  • August 26, 2024

    RTX Settles Bearing Co.'s Trade Secrets Suit On Eve Of Trial

    Defense contractor RTX Corp. on Monday settled claims that it passed a Connecticut roller bearing manufacturer's sensitive design drawings to a competitor, averting a trial set to begin this week.

  • August 26, 2024

    Wild Ga. Horses Need Aid During Suit's Limbo, Advocates Say

    As a Georgia federal judge considers whether to scuttle a lawsuit alleging that a herd of feral horses on one of the state's coastal islands has been neglected and mistreated by federal authorities, the equine plaintiffs have asked the court to order the government to furnish them with emergency stores of food and drinking water.

  • August 26, 2024

    NY Nursing Homes Can't Duck AG's $83M Fraud Suit

    A New York judge shot down a bid by four nursing homes and their operators to dismiss the state attorney general's claims that they defrauded Medicare and Medicaid and neglected residents.

  • August 26, 2024

    Gov't Contracting Policies To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2024

    An overhaul to the U.S. Department of Defense's cybersecurity requirements and a pending rule requiring many contractors to report their greenhouse gas emissions headline a slate of significant policy initiatives for government contractors to watch for during the second half of this year. Here, Law360 previews four upcoming policy changes with significant potential impacts on government contractors.

  • August 23, 2024

    VA Says It Properly Assessed Bids For $22B IT Deal

    The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has told the Court of Federal Claims that it had no obligation to consider potential future conflicts of interest involving contractors added to a $22.3 billion information technology contract, pushing back against allegations that it should have disqualified awardees.

  • August 23, 2024

    Transport Co.'s Union Pushback Flouted Law, Judge Says

    A company that transports migrant children and families from facilities at the U.S.-Mexico border violated federal labor law through its pushback on a union drive, which included interrogating a worker about his union sympathies and later suspending him, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled Friday.

Expert Analysis

  • Contract Disputes Recap: Preserving Payment Rights

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    Stephanie Magnell and Zachary Jacobson at Seyfarth examine three recent decisions that together illustrate the importance of keeping accurate records and adhering to contractual procedures to avoid inadvertently waiving contractual rights to cost reimbursements or nonroutine payments.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step

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    From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Recent Settlement Shows 'China Initiative' Has Life After Death

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    Though the U.S. Department of Justice shuttered its controversial China Initiative two years ago, its recent False Claims Act settlement with the Cleveland Clinic Foundation demonstrates that prosecutors are more than willing to civilly pursue research institutions whose employees were previously targeted, say attorneys at Benesch.

  • DOJ Innovasis Settlement Offers Lessons On Self-Disclosure

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    The recent $12 million settlement with Innovasis and two of its executives demonstrates the U.S. Department of Justice's continued prioritization of Anti-Kickback Statute enforcement amid the growing circuit split over causation, and illustrates important nuances surrounding self-disclosure, say Denise Barnes and Scott Gallisdorfer at Bass Berry.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Standing, Prejudice, Conflicts

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    In this month's bid protest roundup, Caitlin Crujido at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the U.S. Government Accountability Office concerning whether a would-be protestor was an interested party with standing, whether an agency adequately investigated potential procurement violations and whether a proposed firewall sufficiently addressed an impaired objectivity organizational conflict of interest.

  • How Contractors Can Prep For DOD Cybersecurity Rule

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    The proverbial clock is ticking for defense contractors and subcontractors to strengthen their compliance posture in preparation for the rollout of the highly anticipated Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program, so those affected should analyze their existing security standards and take proactive steps to fill in any significant gaps, say Beth Waller and Patrick Austin at Woods Rogers.

  • NYSE Delisting May Be The Cost Of FCPA Compliance

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    ABB’s recent decision to delist its U.S. depository receipts from the New York Stock Exchange, coupled with having settled three Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement actions, begs the question of whether the cost of FCPA compliance should factor into a company's decision to remain listed in the U.S., says John Joy at FTI Law.

  • Series

    Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.

  • Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity

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    The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • Boeing Plea Deal Is A Mixed Bag, Providing Lessons For Cos.

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    The plea deal for conspiracy to defraud regulators that Boeing has tentatively agreed to will, on the one hand, probably help the company avoid further reputational damage, but also demonstrates to companies that deferred prosecution agreements have real teeth, and that noncompliance with DPA terms can be costly, says Edmund Vickers at Red Lion Chambers.

  • Justices' Criminal Law Decisions: The Term In Review

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    Each of the 11 criminal decisions issued in the U.S. Supreme Court’s recently concluded term is independently important, but taken together, they reveal trends in the court’s broader approach to criminal law, presenting both pitfalls and opportunities for defendants and their counsel, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Bid Protest Litigation Will Hold Steady For Now

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    Though the substantive holding of Loper Bright is unlikely to affect bid protests because questions of statutory interpretation are rare, the spirit of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision may signal a general trend away from agency deference even on the complex technical issues that often arise, say Kayleigh Scalzo and Andrew Guy at Covington.

  • Opinion

    Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism

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    As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Piercing FEMA Authority Is Not Insurmountable

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    While the Federal Emergency Management Agency's discretionary authority continues to provide significant protection from claims under the Administrative Procedure Act, Loper Bright is a blow to the argument that Congress gave FEMA unfettered discretion to administer its own programs, says Wendy Huff Ellard at Baker Donelson.

  • 'Outsourcing' Ruling, 5 Years On: A Warning, Not A Watershed

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    A New York federal court’s 2019 ruling in U.S. v. Connolly, holding that the government improperly outsourced an investigation to Deutsche Bank, has not undercut corporate cooperation incentives as feared — but companies should not completely ignore the lessons of the case, say Temidayo Aganga-Williams and Anna Nabutovsky at Selendy Gay.

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