What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You: Recent Federal Circuit Argument Highlights Why Intervening in Bid Protests is Critical
Contractors spend months, if not years, preparing a bid on a single federal contract. So, when the investment pays off and you win the contract, it is a punch to the gut to see a competitor protest your award. Awardees all too often assume the procuring agency and/or the Department of Justice (DOJ) will adequately defend the procurement. Awardees don’t just take the punch, but they get in the ring and punch back as an intervenor in the protest. For . . . Read More
SVOG Alert: SBA Demands Supplemental Documents from Grant Recipients Who Appealed SBA’s Decision to Rescind Their SVOG Grants
In July 2025, we wrote that the Small Business Administration (SBA) had begun issuing letters to recipients of grant funds under the $16.25 Billion COVID-era Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) program, rescinding grant recipients’ eligibility for the program and demanding full or partial repayment of the grants years after award. SBA gave grantees 30 days to file an appeal. SBA continued issuing rescission letters to grantees through at least October 2025, including to grantees whose SVOG awards had been fully closed . . . Read More
Warfighting at Warp Speed, Part 4: DFARS Overhaul
In November 2025, the Department of War (DOW) announced its blueprint for its Acquisition Overhaul, and savvy defense contractors took note of DOW’s plan to realign its processes with its goals— namely, accountability, speed, and industry investment . In concert with the broader Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO), DOW is now implementing a sweeping rewrite of the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS). In this blog, we provide an overview of how the DFARS rollout will occur and some key insights on a few of the class . . . Read More
SBA Strikes Again: New 8(a) Program Suspensions Related to Economic Disadvantage Criteria
On February 11, 2026, the U.S. Small Business Administration issued a press release announcing that it was initiating termination proceedings and suspending over 150 Washington, D.C.-based 8(a) firms for allegedly failing to meet “economic disadvantage” eligibility criteria for the 8(a) Program. This is a bold move as traditionally proposed terminations are not also coupled with suspensions. And while the press release asserts that these firms “exceeded statutory net worth limits, adjusted gross income caps, or total asset limits,” the notice . . . Read More
DOL’s Got Opinions—Lots of Them: Important FLSA and FMLA Guidance for Employers
On January 5, 2026, the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued six new opinion letters related to various topics under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Below, PilieroMazza provides a brief overview of the three most relevant opinion letters, along with key takeaways for employers. For a full list of all of the opinion letters issued by DOL to date, please visit the DOL’s website . A. FLSA2026-1: Learned Professional Exemption and Employer Discretion . . . Read More
PilieroMazza Annual Review: DOJ’s FY2025 False Claims Act Results and Compliance Considerations for Government Contractors in FY2026
The Department of Justice (DOJ) released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 False Claims Act (FCA) results, and the message for government contractors is clear: FCA enforcement is accelerating, and procurement fraud, cybersecurity non-compliance, pandemic program fraud, and tariff/custom duty evasion remain key priorities. DOJ reported total FCA settlements and judgments of more than $6.8 Billion for FY2025, the largest annual recovery in FCA history. Below are key takeaways from DOJ’s annual fraud statistics report, our outlook for FY2026, and important . . . Read More
Beware the “Hallmarks” of AI: Recent GAO Decision Provides Cautionary Tale for Protesters
For better or worse, artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the legal industry. The Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) recently decided Bramstedt Surgical Inc. [1] , dedicating three pages to warnings about penalties it could have imposed on the protester and protester’s counsel for incorrect citations. For those tracking GAO’s recent handling of protesters and lawyers who file documents that appear to be riddled with AI-hallucinated citations or legal arguments citing to cases that do not stand for the premise alluded to, the decision comes as . . . Read More
DOD Releases Intellectual Property Guidebook: Key Insights for Defense Contractors, Part 3
When doing business with the Department of Defense (DOD), contractors must ensure that protecting their intellectual property (IP) and understanding DOD’s data rights regime under the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) is top of mind. DOD released its Intellectual Property Guidebook (Guidebook) in May 2025. This blog, the third in the series, takes a closer look at the doctrine of segregability, modular licensing, special categories of data, and the general rules surrounding the government’s data rights in each. Visit this link to access . . . Read More
Contract Claims 101: REAs vs. Claims vs. Appeals, Part 1
What is a contract claim? How do I handle an issue with the government’s administration of my contract? Who do I contact when a project falls behind schedule, but it wasn’t my fault? These are common and critical questions that come up for government contractors—especially over the past year, in light of the Trump Administration’s sweeping changes to the federal acquisition landscape, an unprecedented federal government shutdown, and uncertainty surrounding award funding. In the coming months, PilieroMazza ’s REAs, Claims, and Appeals Group will publish a . . . Read More
January 2026: Partial Government Shutdown Imminent—Key Considerations for Federal Contractors
Last fall, the longest government shutdown in U.S. history—at 43 days—had lasting and widespread negative impacts across the country. The shutdown ended when Congress eventually agreed on an appropriations bill, but that bill funded the government only through January 30, 2026, with full-year appropriations only for Agriculture, the Legislative Branch, Military Construction, and Veterans Affairs. Since then, full-year appropriations were passed and signed into law for Commerce, Justice, Science, Energy and Water Development, and Interior and Environment. However, six of . . . Read More