The United States Court of Federal Claims (COFC) has ruled that an agency has to conduct a small business Rule of Two analysis before it can use an existing multiple-award indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (MAIDIQ) contract vehicle to procure services. This is a landmark decision, given that GSA Schedule contracts are exempt from the Rule of Two.
Continue readingTag Archives: Court of Federal Claims
COFC: IndyCar Racing Team Out of Luck, No Implied Contract with the National Guard
It’s never a good idea to perform work without a written contract authorizing the work; handshake agreements between the Government and contractors aren’t reliable. This is particularly true when a dispute arises and the contractor wants compensation. Without a contract, the firm might be out of luck.
Continue readingCOFC Rejects Agency’s Basis for Default Termination
The Court of Federal Claims recently reversed an agency’s default termination of a contractor that had experienced numerous performance issues and delays. The agency claimed that performance was “incurably behind schedule,” despite the contractor’s proposed recovery schedule.
The court held that the agency lacked a reasonable belief that the contract could not be timely completed.
Continue readingCOFC Strikes a Blow to VA-Verified VOSBs and SDVOSBs
A few months ago, GAO confirmed that where VA uses GPO as its buying agent, it still must to comply with the Rule of Two in 38 U.S.C. 8127(d) (see our blog post on the case ). After VA took corrective action, however, another bid protest was again filed, but this time in the Court of Federal Claims.
Surprisingly, there, the Court concluded differently, finding that GPO was not required to set aside the procurement for SDVOSBs or VOSBs, despite acting on VA’s behalf. In so doing, it has weakened the Rule of Two.
Continue readingContractor Did Not Release Claims for Flood-Caused Delay
I never give much thought to what I’ll do if the unexpected happens. I assume most people don’t. They expect things to go according to plan. As Meridian Engineering Company found out at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims recently, sorting it out when things don’t go to plan can be a long and arduous process.
Continue readingCourt Denies Protest of Procurement, Holds Dept. of Education Had Rational Basis
The Court of Federal Claims recently wrote that “[t]here is no such thing as a perfect procurement.” To anyone familiar with federal government contracts, this commentary states the obvious.
But springing from the Court’s observation is another important reality: “a flawed procurement is not necessarily an illegal one.”
Continue readingOne Protest Spoils the Bunch
GAO recently dismissed several bid protests to an $82 billion procurement because of the actions of a company that had already lost its protest.
In AECOM Management Services, four different companies protested the U.S. Army’s logistics civil augmentation program procurement for various “Setting the Theater” services for the Army’s Northern Command, Southern Command, African Command, European Command, Central Command, Pacific Command, and Afghanistan.
Continue reading