When an agency announces its intent to take corrective action in response to a protest, it’s easy for the protester to feel that it has “won”—and to some extent it has. At the very least, its protest has prompted the agency to regroup and remedy one or more perceived problems with the subject procurement. Despite
Helping individuals, companies, and organizations understand key legal and practical considerations for promoting compliance and making better business decisions in these types of federal, state, and local government contracting matters MORE
Eric Whytsell
A natural problem solver, Eric enjoys helping clients assess, understand, and develop and implement practical strategies to address complicated issues relating to government contracts, intellectual property, cybersecurity, and export controls.
Don’t Rely on a Procuring Agency to Track Down Past Performance Questionnaires
Given how much emphasis federal procurement law properly places on fairness, it can be easy to assume that government buyers must do everything necessary to ensure a fair procurement. But that’s not always the case. For example, as the recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) decision in Yulista Tactical Services LLC, B-417317.3; B-417317.5; B-417317.6 (January…
New Year, New Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy for Export Controls and Sanctions
Several years ago, the head of the State Department’s Director of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) explained that, when a company engaged in substantial exporting makes no voluntary disclosures of export control violations, something is wrong. He reasoned that every company is made up of human beings—and human beings make mistakes, so every company doing lots…
New Changes to the ITAR Focus on Unclassified Technical Data And the release of “Access Information”
As part of its years-long project to update and revise the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and better align them with the Export Control Regulations, the Department of State (DoS) recently amended the ITAR with an interim rule to address another group of amendments first proposed in June of 2015. The new rule defines…
When the Government Asks for Required Information, Answer (But First Make Sure You Have Prepared for the Question).
You might think that this could go without saying, but apparently it can’t: If you want to succeed in your dealings with the federal government, you need to timely provide information required by law, particularly when government personnel specifically ask you for it. The recent decision of the SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals in…