Bid Protests and Size Status Protests

Williams Mullen’s government contracts litigators know that success means leveling the playing field and maximizing a client’s opportunity to win the contract, not only the contract protest. We recognize pre-award bid protests as a tool to be utilized sparingly, but effectively, when other means of seeking government correction of a defective solicitation do not produce the appropriate result. We have successfully pursued numerous post-award protests and have succeeded in intervening in third-party contract protests and bid protests to defend the government’s award to our client. We have handled contract protests before the Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Additionally, we represent clients before the procurement agencies of states throughout the United States.

Williams Mullen’s government contracts litigators know that success means leveling the playing field and maximizing a client’s opportunity to win the contract, not only the contract protest. We recognize pre-award bid protests as a tool to be utilized sparingly, but effectively, when other means of seeking government correction of a defective solicitation do not produce the appropriate result. We have successfully pursued numerous post-award protests and have succeeded in intervening in third-party contract protests and bid protests to defend the government’s award to our client. We have handled contract protests before the Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Additionally, we represent clients before the procurement agencies of states throughout the United States. Our practitioners are experienced in the following critical areas affecting our client’s ability to compete for and win contract awards:

• Past performance determinations
• Best value determinations
• Compliance with evaluation criteria
• Proposal responsiveness issues
• Size status matters

Williams Mullen’s Government Contracts Litigation and Investigations lawyers regularly handle complex state procurement protests and issues arising out of compliance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations. Those protests involve the full spectrum of federal and state procurements for goods and services, including large-scale federal systems and programs: IT procurements, commercial item acquisitions, construction and public works projects, health care systems and products, and professional support services.

Williams Mullen’s Government Contracts Litigation team has both advocated and defended size status protests before the various areas of the U. S. Small Business Administration Offices of Government Contracting and appeals of those size determinations before the SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals. We have recognized a significant rise in the numbers of small business status protests and have garnered a significant level of experience in these size determinations. Frequently, these protests must be filed within a few days of the government’s posting of its notice of award and the awardee whose small business status is protested has a very short time to provide the SBA with a complete report of corporate records and its brief in opposition of the size protest. Our government contracts litigators are well-versed in the regulations that govern size status determinations and the litigation process.