Government Contracting and Compliance

The experienced attorneys in our Government Contracting and Compliance Practice Group advise and represent employers regarding the unique risks and compliance challenges they face when they do business with the federal government. We support our clients not only with respect to their obligations as employers, but as to the broader legal risks and obligations that are embedded across the procurement lifecycle from bids and proposals to contract disputes, investigations, and enforcement actions. With the ability to deliver comprehensive government contracts counseling, we help clients navigate employment-related liabilities and disputes seamlessly within the broader context of the risks and obligations they manage as federal contractors. Our team works with established contractors as well as employers navigating the government marketplace for the first time.

Procurement Counseling and FAR/DFARS Compliance

We support clients before award, at award, and throughout performance, with a focus on proactive compliance and risk management. We advise on how to handle interactions with government customers, structure teaming relationships, and prepare compliant proposals. We counsel on solicitation interpretation, certifications and representations, and compliance with FAR, DFARS, agency supplements, and executive orders. We also advise on cost allowability, organizational conflicts of interest (OCI), cybersecurity obligations, and data rights protection.. For non-FAR instruments, we help clients evaluate grants, cooperative agreements, and other transactions.

Employment and Labor Compliance

Workforce-related mandates and disputes frequently drive procurement risk and trigger audits, investigations, and enforcement actions by federal government customers. We advise on employment-related executive orders and regulatory requirements stemming from Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act, Service Contract Labor Standards, the Davis-Bacon Act, and related wage and hour obligations. We also counsel on designing compliant recruiting, hiring, compensation, and selection systems. We have extensive experience defending systemic discrimination allegations, negotiating agency resolutions, and aligning compliance programs with reporting and auditing expectations. Our attorneys include former Department of Justice and Department of Labor officials who bring an insider’s perspective to agency priorities and enforcement strategies.

Compliance Reporting

Our attorneys and in-house data analysts prepare and file workforce data reports, including EEO-1s, VETS-4212’s, state-mandated compensation disclosures, and reports. We also prepare Section 503 and VEVRAA affirmative action/nondiscrimination programs and defend compliant investigations under those statutes, as well as counsel clients on outreach and recruitment, recordkeeping, and self-identification obligations and best practices.

Contract Administration, REAs, and Claims

Programs evolve and requirements change. We help contractors identify when equitable adjustments are appropriate, and we develop strategies for presenting and negotiating requests for equitable adjustment and, where necessary, pursuing claims under the Contract Disputes Act. We assist with contract interpretation and administration during contract performance, working to resolve issues early while preserving the contractor’s rights and defenses.

Supply Chain, Teaming, and Small Business Programs

We advise clients on subcontracts, teaming agreements, joint ventures, collaboration agreements, and mentor-protégé relationships. We also help clients navigate small business programs and eligibility issues, and we assist non-traditional contractors in structuring compliant pathways to federal work.

Executive Order Compliance

Executive orders can change rapidly and impose certification, monitoring, and flow-down duties. We advise on assessing applicability, updating policies and contract language, implementing internal controls, and responding to allegations of noncompliance.

Disputes, Investigations, and Enforcement

When compliance issues escalate, we represent clients in targeted disputes, Contract Disputes Act claims and appeals, suspension and debarment defense, and internal investigations that intersect with False Claims Act exposure.

Representative Services

Counseling clients on FAR/DFARS compliance and procurement issues
Advising on cost allowability and cybersecurity (CMMC) requirements
Negotiating REAs and CDA claims
Investigating and handling reports of mischarging
Structuring subcontracts, teaming agreements, and joint ventures
Establishing compliant procedures for recruiting and hiring federal officials and employees
Advising on compliance with post-government “revolving door” restrictions
Responding to Inspector General investigations
Conducting internal investigations and FCA risk assessments
Defending whistleblower litigation
Navigating federal ethics regulations, including rules on gifts and travel
Complying with Drug-Free Workplace Act obligations
Advising on federal paid sick leave, Service Contract Act, and Davis-Bacon Act obligations
Evaluating arbitration programs for compliance with “Franken Amendment” regulations
Implementing executive order compliance programs
Developing and defending Section 503 and VEVRAA affirmative action/nondiscrimination programs and complaint investigations
Preparing and filing EEO-1 and VET-4212 reports
Preparing and filing state pay reports, including for California, Illinois, Massachusetts
Assisting employers with bias audits to support compliance with various state obligations