GAO Protests / Bid Protests before GAO, COFC and Federal Agencies
Bid protests are actions by disappointed offerors to challenge the award of a contract or the terms of procurement solicitations filed at the procuring agency, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (COFC) or, more often with the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver has represented companies in all aspects of the bid protest process, and has defended or filed cases at the GAO, and the Court of Federal Claims. Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver has experience with all aspects of the bid protest process, from preparing the initial protest to examining witnesses at trials and hearings. Any company that is considering filing a bid protest should seek legal advice quickly as bid protests have strict filing deadlines and requirements. Missing the deadline will cause the protester to lose its legal rights. Generally, when a protest is filed at the GAO within the prescribed deadlines, the protester can actually halt the award or the contract performance unless this is overridden by a senior agency official. From a business perspective this can be a huge advantage and can even allow an incumbent protester to remain on the contract.
Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver helps clients distinguish between protests that have a real chance of winning and those that are will likely be more difficult.
The Black Ball Myth
Some companies believe that they should never protest because they will be "black balled" by the agency and will not get any business from the procuring agency in the future if they protest. In the vast majority of cases, this belief is untrue. Protesters can not only win cases, but win the contract as well. Over a thousand companies file bid protests every year. Bid protesters have included huge names in government contracting, such as World Airways (Thomas Dunlap & David Ludwig of Dunlap Grubb & Weaver - $485 million protest), AT&T, IBM, Lockheed Martin and EDS. A policy of "never protesting" is self-defeating, and can encourage government agencies to award contracts to a competitor if the agency believes that you are unlikely to challenge the result.
On the other side of bid protests, a company that wins a contract that is subsequently protested by a disappointed offeror is permitted to intervene and defend its award at the GAO or the Court of Federal Claims. Intervention is almost always the right course if the protested contract is important to your bottom line. Some companies decide not to intervene because they believe that a protest will likely be unsuccessful. Any company that is the awardee of a protested contract that is important to its business will want to seriously consider intervening to assist the agency in defending against the protest.
Contact us today — and quickly! We will respond within 24 hours for a bid protest request — and in most cases within 12 hours.
For more information and pricing, please fill out the Request for Information Form and a Dunlap, Grubb and Weaver representative will contact you. |
Bid Protests
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