Small Business Update & SBA s New Mentor-Protege Program
Presented by Jon Williams
Small Business Valuation — What Is It And Why Does It Matter?
By Michael A. de Gennaro Government contractors who have built successful businesses over a period of time often neglect to answer one simple question until very late in the game. The question, “What is my business worth?” has far-reaching implications and comes up in a number of scenarios, such as the sale of the contractor’s business, the creation of long-term incentive plans for employees, estate/business succession planning, and death/divorce of an owner. At least monthly, we receive a call from . . . Read More
SBA s New Mentor-Protege Program
Presented by Jon Williams at FDA HUBZone Industry Day
Keep an Eye Out for Identity of Interest Affiliation
By Julia Di Vito Anyone who does business with a small business government contractor will always want to be aware of any potential bases for affiliation that might arise. However, the so-called “identity of interest” affiliation, as described in 13 C.F.R. § 121.103(f), is a particularly easy type of affiliation for a firm to have and not even realize it. It is important to be aware of the way identity of interest affiliation can be found and how to avoid . . . Read More
The Weekly Update February 10, 2017
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustments The Small Business Administration has issued an interim final rule amending its regulations to adjust for inflation the amount of certain civil monetary penalties that are within the jurisdiction of the agency. These adjustments comply with the requirement in the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, to make annual adjustments to the penalties. This rule is . . . Read More
2016 Saw Rise in False Claims Act Actions and Recoveries
By Ambi Biggs The U.S. government and whistleblowers brought an increased number of False Claims Act (“FCA”) cases – as well recovered a larger amount in settlements and judgements – in the fiscal year 2016, as compared to 2015. In 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice recovered $4.7 billion in settlements and judgments, the third highest annual recovery ever for the department in the FCA’s history. Under the FCA, anyone who knowingly presents a false or fraudulent claim to the . . . Read More
Key Issues for Due Diligence of Government Contracts – Part II
By Kimi Murakami In a recent blog post, I highlighted key issues to be analyzed when performing due diligence on a target company that performs government contracts. In addition to the review of government contracts, comprehensive due diligence review of any target company should also include evaluation of five other broad categories relating to general business matters discussed below as part II of key issues to be considered when performing due diligence in M&A transactions for government contractors. 1. . . . Read More
Expert Witness Testimony: Often the Critical Component for a Successful Case
If your company is facing litigation, especially in high-stakes cases, one of the first questions you and your counsel should address is whether the testimony of an expert witness might be helpful, or even essential, to your case. Expert witness testimony comes into play, as stated in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 702, whenever “the expert’s scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue.” Whether . . . Read More
The Weekly Update February 3, 2017
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS Presidential Executive Order on Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs On January 30, 2017, President Trump issued an executive order requiring for every one new federal regulation issued, at least two prior regulations be identified for elimination, and that the cost of planned regulations be prudently managed and controlled through a budgeting process. In addition, for fiscal year 2017, the heads of all agencies are directed that the total incremental cost of all new regulations, including repealed regulations, . . . Read More
Court of Federal Claims Applies a 150 Employee Size Standard to ITVAR Non-Manufacturers
The Court of Federal Claims (“Court”) has issued a bid protest decision which stated, in apparent dicta, that a concern must satisfy a 150-employee standard under the Information Technology Value Added Resellers (“ITVAR”) exception to NAICS code 541519 as opposed to the 500-employee size standard which a concern usually must meet to qualify as a small business under the requirements of the “non-manufacturer rule” (“NMR”). York Telecom Corp. v. United States, No. 15-489 (Fed. Cl. Jan. 11, 2017). According to an SBA . . . Read More