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Jay Carey

Recognized by Chambers as one of the nation’s top bid protest lawyers and government contracts practitioners, Jay Carey represents clients in complex, high-stakes government procurements often worth billions of dollars. He is a co-chair of the firm’s Government Contracts practice group and a co-chair of the Aerospace, Defense, and National Security industry group.

Jay has won bid protests collectively worth more than $100 billion, for clients across a range of industries — including aerospace & defense, energy, healthcare, biotechnology, cybersecurity, IT, and telecommunications. He litigates protests before the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); the Court of Federal Claims (COFC); and state tribunals across the country. A list of his recent wins can be found under the “Representative Matters” tab.

In addition, Jay advises clients on compliance matters, conducts internal investigations, and defends against investigations by federal and state agencies. He also counsels clients on matters related to the formation of government contracts, including organizational conflicts of interest and the protection of intellectual property rights when entering into procurement contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, and “Other Transaction Authority” agreements with the government.

Jay serves as co-chair of the American Bar Association Public Contract Law Section’s Bid Protest Committee.

In a new rule announced yesterday, the FAR Council implemented prior statutory changes to GAO’s bid protest jurisdiction.  For task orders issued by the Department of Defense, NASA, or the Coast Guard, the rule provides that GAO will have jurisdiction only over task orders “valued in excess of $25 million.”
Continue Reading New FAR Rule Implements Increased Minimum Dollar Threshold for GAO’s Protest Jurisdiction Over DoD, NASA, and Coast Guard Task Orders

On April 24, 2018, the Department of Defense (DoD) issued a Notice and Request for Comment on draft guidance that DoD proposes for assessing contractors’ System Security Plans (SSPs) and their implementation of the security controls in NIST Special Publication (SP) 800-171. This includes assessments as part of source selection decisions and during contract performance. DFARS 252.204-7012 requires defense contractors to provide “adequate security” for networks where covered defense information (CDI) is processed, stored, or transmitted. Adequate security means, “at a minimum,” implementing NIST SP 800-171. To demonstrate implementation or planned implementation of the security controls in NIST SP 800-171, contractors must describe in a SSP how the security requirements have been implemented and develop plans of action and milestones (POA&M) that describe how any unimplemented security requirements will be met.
Continue Reading Draft DoD Guidance on SSPs and NIST SP 800-171 – Impact on Bid Protests and Ongoing Contract Performance

On April 2, 2018, GAO issued a final rule revising its existing regulations to implement a number of changes to its bid protest process.  The new rule becomes effective on May 1, 2018.

Several of these changes implement requirements in Section 1501 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY2014 (“Act”), which directed GAO to institute an electronic filing system and authorized GAO to charge a filing fee to cover the cost of that electronic filing system.  But the revisions are not limited to those two issues.

Here are the highlights:Continue Reading GAO Debuts New Protest Procedures Effective May 1, 2018

Last week, the RAND Corporation published a report entitled “Assessing Bid Protests of U.S. Department of Defense Procurements: Identifying Issues, Trends, And Drivers.”  In it, RAND analyzed the prevalence and impact of bid protests of U.S. Department of Defense (“DoD”) acquisitions, and concluded that DoD bid protests are both “exceedingly uncommon” and, on the whole, effective in prompting DoD to take remedial actions to address issues identified in the protests.  The report, which was commissioned by Congress in Section 885 of the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) Pub. L. No. 114-238, is expected to be a driver of changes to the protest process, and includes several recommendations counseling against significant changes that appear to be favorable to protesters.
Continue Reading RAND Report Concludes That Protests of Department of Defense Procurements Are Rare, Effective

On Monday, GAO issued its Bid Protest Annual Report to Congress for Fiscal Year 2017.  Most notably, the effectiveness rate hit 47%.  The effectiveness rate looks at all cases filed, and measures the percentage of cases in which a protester obtains some relief, whether through a sustain by GAO or voluntary corrective action by the agency.

That’s right:  Protesters obtained relief in almost half of all protests last year.  And this year’s 47% effectiveness rate is a new all-time high — continuing a steady upward march over the past several years.  When GAO began measuring the sustain rate in 2001, it was just 33%.  By 2008, it had risen to 42%.  It then held pretty steady through 2012, but has been rising since:Continue Reading GAO’s Annual Report: Protests Are Down, But Their Effectiveness Is Up

On October 15, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council (FAR Council), issued a proposed rule to clarify contracting officer and agency responsibilities when justifying sole source awards exceeding $22 million dollars made through the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) program.  The revisions directly address recommendations from a December 2012 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report titled, “Slow Start to Implementation of Justifications for 8(a) Sole-Source Contracts,” which, among other things, highlighted agency “confusion” about the existing justification requirements in the FAR.
Continue Reading FAR Council Clarifies 8(a) Sole Source Justification Requirements for High Value Contracts

GAO’s jurisdiction over protests of civilian agency task and delivery orders valued at more than $10 million will sunset today. 41 U.S.C. § 410(f)(3).  GAO will continue to have jurisdiction over Department of Defense task and delivery orders over $10 million — Congress made that jurisdiction permanent in 2011. 
Continue Reading GAO’s Task Order Protest Jurisdiction Expires Today

Veteran-owned small businesses scored a win at the Supreme Court with a unanimous ruling in Kingdomware Technologies, Inc. v. United States.  The case involved a law that requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (the “VA” or the “Department”) to restrict competition to service-disabled or veteran-owned small businesses when a contracting officer determines that “at least two of these businesses will submit offers and that the award can be made at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the United States.”  That requirement is known as the “Rule of Two.”  In Kingdomware, the Court held that the Rule of Two covers orders under the Federal Supply Schedule (“FSS”), and that it continues to apply even after the Department has reached its statutorily mandated annual goal of contracting with service-disabled and veteran-owned small businesses. 
Continue Reading Supreme Court Clarifies Broad Scope of the “Rule of Two” in VA Contracting

You just learned your company is one of several winners of a multiple-award IDIQ contract.  You also learned one of your competitors, which should have been ineligible, is also an awardee.  So, as things stand, you’ll have to split the contract — and compete for orders — with that competitor.  Can you file a protest challenging the improper award to your competitor?  Until last week, the answer was “no.”  Now the answer is “maybe” — but only if you go to the Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”).

To pursue a protest, the protester must establish that it is an interested party, by showing that (1) it is an actual or prospective offeror; and (2) its direct economic interest would be affected by the award of, or failure to award, the contract in question.  31 U.S.C. § 3551(2)(A); 4 C.F.R. § 21.0(a)(1).  Since its decision in Recon Optical, Inc., et al., B-272239, July 17, 1996, 96-2 CPD ¶ 21, GAO has consistently held that winners of multiple-award IDIQ contracts are not interested parties for purposes of a protest, but it has typically done so while implying that, in rare circumstances, an awardee might be able to show it has an economic interest sufficient to make it an interested party.
Continue Reading Hope for Offerors Who Win a Multiple-Award IDIQ Contract and Want to Protest an Improper Award to a Competitor

Through the first 5 months of FY 2016, GAO is sustaining protests at a 22% clip — a far higher rate than in recent years.

GAO’s sustain rate considers only those protests that go to a decision on the merits, and reflects the percentage of those protests where GAO finds in favor of the protester. In recent years, GAO’s sustain rate has generally declined.Continue Reading GAO Protest Sustain Rate on the Rise