Government Contracts

Government contracting is a complicated field in which the laws and regulations are ever-changing. Birch Horton Bittner & Cherot assists our clients in setting up and maintaining compliance programs to ensure that companies run smoothly and remain in compliance with applicable laws and contractual obligations. We conduct compliance reviews to assess a client’s potential risk of noncompliance with small business size and affiliation rules, 8(a) Business Development Program regulations, and general Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) requirements.

Our deep knowledge of government contracts law helps our clients benefit from the business opportunities available while avoiding the pitfalls that often challenge companies that are unfamiliar with the vast number, complexity, and uniqueness of regulations and compliance requirements in the field of federal contracting. We counsel clients regarding ethics issues and conflicts of interest, conduct internal investigations if there are allegations of inappropriate activities, and help clients respond to investigations conducted by government agencies. We also assist clients with compliance issues before and after significant events, such as mergers and acquisitions, Small Business Administration (SBA) certification, contract terminations, size or bid protests, major regulatory changes, and other events.

We actively counsel clients in the following areas:

• Government procurement matters, including teaming agreements, acquisitions, joint ventures, mentor-protégé relationships, review of solicitations, small business or other SBA qualification requirements, proposals, subcontracts, contract performance, claims, bid protests, contract disputes, and terminations
• Government investigations, the False Claims Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and whistleblower litigation issues.
• Small business law, national and Homeland Security issues, teaming, corporate organization, and employment matters that often confront clients in the government contracting industry
• Small and large businesses entering the government contracting industry or experienced government contractors
• Creating and maintaining compliance programs to ensure that companies run smoothly and remain in compliance with applicable laws and contractual obligations
• Evaluate compliance programs, both on an ongoing basis and in response to a potential noncompliance event, helping to ensure that companies remain up-to-date in their compliance program policies and that the program is implemented in keeping with those policies

Birch Horton Bittner & Cherot counsels clients of all sizes from a variety of industries. Our attorneys have diverse experience, from working in federal, state and local governments to working within corporations in the private sector, which provides them with well-rounded, practical perspectives on all the stakeholders in the government contracts life cycle.