Category: Dominique L. Casimir

More Cases and Expanded Data Analytics: A Closer Look at DOJ’s FY 2023 False Claims Act Statistics


Dominique L. Casimir, Luke W. Meier, and Oliver E. Jury ●


The United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) recently announced its statistics for False Claims Act (“FCA”) FY 2023 settlements and judgments. DOJ recovered $2.68 billion in FY 2023; as usual, the majority of these recoveries (nearly 70 percent, or $1.8B) came from the healthcare industry. DOJ continues to make use of data analytics to inform its enforcement activity.

Background

Comparing year-to-year variance in the volume of DOJ’s FCA recoveries provides only marginal utility. More telling is the rapid expansion of the non-qui tam matters opened during the past two years. In FY 2022, DOJ opened 305 non-qui tam matters, representing approximately 186 percent of its prior ten-year average (164). In FY 2023, this increase continued, with DOJ opening 500 non-qui tam matters—305 percent of the ten-year average over FY 12–21.

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Deadline Looms for the Submission of Comments on FAR Council’s Proposed Rule Updating Federal Debarment Procedures


Dominique L. Casimir and Patrick F. Collins ●

Introduction

The United States spends hundreds of billions of dollars annually on government contracts, grants, and other forms of federal assistance. Although most entities that receive these awards are good business partners, the government must protect itself from those that lack integrity. One of the ways the government does this is by imposing suspension or debarment, which renders an entity broadly ineligible to receive federal awards for a specified period.

The suspension and debarment regulations at Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) Subpart 9.4 (which apply to procurement contracts) and at 2 C.F.R. Part 180, known as the Nonprocurement Common Rule (“NCR”) (which apply to nonprocurement transactions such as grants) have remained relatively unchanged for many years. But change may be on the horizon, as the FAR Council recently issued a proposed rule that aims to better harmonize the two regulatory regimes. The period for public comment closes on March 11, 2024—one week from today. Rulemaking is infrequent in this area, so the final rule will be highly anticipated.

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Meet Our Newest Partner, Robyn Burrows


Justin A. Chiarodo, Dominique L. Casimir, and Robyn N. Burrows

In late 2023, we were very happy to announce that Blank Rome Government Contracts associate Robyn N. Burrows was elevated to partner in our Government Contracts practice in Washington, D.C., effective January 2024.

Robyn is a key member of our practice group who represents clients on a wide range of government contracts matters. She has experience preparing and negotiating complex claims and has litigated disputes before the boards of contract appeal and state and federal courts. Robyn has a particular focus on emerging supply chain and cybersecurity issues and has counseled numerous clients on Section 889 compliance. She also provides counseling on cost/pricing issues, domestic preferences, protection of contractor data and intellectual property, and suspension and debarment matters. She has experience navigating clients through False Claims Act investigations and regularly assists clients in high-value bid protests before the Government Accountability Office and U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

Robyn has also developed particular experience with Department of Energy (“DOE”) contracts, and has handled matters involving whistleblower complaints, civil investigative demands, subcontractor disputes, cost-allowability issues, and other unique DOE requirements applying to management and operating (“M&O”) contractors.

Robyn is a member of the Public Contract Law Section of the American Bar Association, where she is Vice-Chair – Contract Claims & Disputes Committee, Vice-Chair – Cybersecurity, Privacy and Emerging Technology Committee, and has served as the Associate Editor for the section’s quarterly journal, The Procurement Lawyer, since 2021. Robyn also serves on the Washington, D.C. Bar Government Contracts Steering Committee.

Before joining Blank Rome, Robyn represented construction clients in federal contracting matters. During law school, she was a research editor for the George Mason Law Review. She interned with the Honorable R. Terrence Ney of the Fairfax County Circuit Court, and with the administrative judges at the Office of Hearings and Appeals of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

We took some time to chat with Robyn to see how she is settling into her new position, and to learn more about her, including what she enjoys doing outside of work!

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My Company Just Got a Notice of Proposed Debarment. Now What?

 

Dominique L. Casimir ●

Receiving a Notice of Proposed Debarment from a federal agency Suspending and Debarring Official (“SDO”) is an alarming moment for any government contractor. It means the government believes there is a basis to question whether the entity is “presently responsible.” Debarment is sometimes referred to colloquially as the “death penalty” for government contractors because of its many, potentially devastating effects. A debarred entity is ineligible to receive new government contracts from any executive agency, not just the agency that imposes the debarment. Additionally, any existing federal contracts cannot be augmented or extended and may even be terminated.

Debarment can also seriously disrupt numerous areas of an entity’s business, including prime-sub relationships, teaming arrangements, and the normal function of the supply chain, because companies involved in government contracts ordinarily avoid partnering with debarred entities, and even entities proposed for debarment. Moreover, there are significant reputational impacts associated with debarment and these can affect everything from workplace morale to customer goodwill and even commercial relationships. And finally, debarment casts a long shadow, because even after the debarment ends, an entity will almost certainly be required to disclose the prior debarment as it pursues future government work.

For these reasons, it is critical to respond effectively to a Notice of Proposed Debarment. This blog post offers suggestions to federal contractors who have been proposed for debarment and are wondering what to do next.

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Blank Rome Attorneys Appointed to American Bar Association’s Public Contract Law Section Leadership for the 2023–2024 Term

Blank Rome LLP is pleased to announce that nine attorneys from the firm’s nationally recognized Government Contracts group have been appointed to leadership roles in the American Bar Association’s (“ABA”) Public Contract Law Section for the 2023–2024 term, marking the highest number of ABA Public Contract Law Section leadership positions held by our attorneys in the firm’s history.

Visit our website to learn more about their roles and the Section of Public Contract Law.

Dominique L. Casimir Named Section Chair’s Special Recognition Award Recipient by the ABA Section of Public Contract Law

Blank Rome LLP is pleased to announce that partner Dominique L. Casimir, who serves as co-chair of the firm’s General Litigation group, received the American Bar Association Section of Public Contract Law‘s (“the Section”) Section Chair’s Special Recognition Award. 

Please visit our website to learn more about Dominique’s award.

Amplifying Our Clarion Call

Justin A. Chiarodo, Dominique L. Casimir, and Krystal Studavent Ramsey  ●

Krystal Studavent Ramsey headshot image

We are thrilled to kick off our new Government Contracts Navigator blog series, “Sustained Action: DEI in Government Contracting,” which shines a light on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and progress in the government contracts industry and at Blank Rome. As we wrote back in 2020, working to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion is not a one-time exercise but a practice—one to which we are committed for the long run.

We approach this effort fully embracing that we bring our own backgrounds, journeys, and perspectives to a complicated area, and that fostering an environment of mutual respect and the free exchange of ideas is critical to promoting the understanding of different viewpoints and implementing solutions that make a difference.

“Sustained Action” is our next step in this journey. This post focuses on our recent participation in the American Bar Association Public Contract Law Section’s (“ABA PCL”) 10 Day Tune Up, and other initiatives we are driving at Blank Rome in 2023. The 10 Day Tune Up was a follow-up program to the successful 2020 program that we wrote about previously, the 21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge© (“21-Day Challenge”).

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Blank Rome Successfully Represents KPMG LLP in GAO Bid Protest Challenging U.S. Air Force Award Decision

Samarth Barot headshot image

A Blank Rome team represented KPMG LLP in a successful bid protest before the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”), in which KPMG challenged the award decision of the United States Air Force in a procurement for visible accessible understandable linked trusted (“VAULT”) subject matter expert support.  

The team was led by Dominique L. Casimir and included Robyn N. Burrows and Samarth Barot. 

To learn more, please visit our website.

How to Manage a Potential Whistleblower

Dominique L. Casimir, Jennifer A. Short, and Michael Joseph Montalbano ●

Jennifer A. Short headshot image

The federal False Claims Act (“FCA”) is one of the United States’ most effective tools to detect and prevent fraud against the Government. One reason the FCA is so effective is that it encourages the employees of an organization to come forward as claimants and receive a share of any financial recovery to the Government. Recognizing the central role of these whistleblowers in the FCA’s enforcement scheme, Congress included an anti-retaliation provision in the statute that protects them when they report suspected fraudulent conduct. Under the FCA’s anti-retaliation provision, employees, contractors, or agents can sue for damages on their own behalf if they are “discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment because of lawful acts done” in connection with a reported FCA violation. 31 U.S.C. § 3730(h)(1). Likewise, nearly every state also affords some degree of whistleblower protection, either statutorily or in the common law.

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