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Robert J. Sneckenberg

Partner

Overview

Rob Sneckenberg is a government contracts problem solver and litigator. Clients trust Rob to deliver timely and actionable advice for their most complex matters, from bid protests to contract claims to investigations.

Rob regularly litigates bid protests before the U.S. Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims as well as contract claim disputes before the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals and the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals. He also handles a wide array of commercial contract and subcontract disputes, organizational conflict of interest assessments, and procurement integrity and mandatory disclosure investigations.

Rob is a co-host of the monthly All Things Protest podcast, which covers major trends in bid protest litigation, key developments in high-profile cases, and best practices in state and federal procurement. He is also a Vice Chair of the ABA Public Contract Law Section’s Bid Protest Committee; an editor for Government Contract Bid Protests: A Practical and Procedural Guide, which is available on Westlaw; and a member of the Advisory Board for Thomson Reuters’ The Government Contractor.

Rob has repeatedly been recognized by Super Lawyers as a "Rising Star" in government contracts since 2017, and was highlighted as a "Key Lawyer" in The Legal 500 United States’ 2021 profile of Crowell & Moring’s "Tier 1" Government Contracts Practice. He is also very active in the firm’s pro bono program, where he focuses on civil and criminal appeals.

During law school, Rob served as an editor of the Federal Circuit Bar Journal and interned at the COFC and the U.S. Department of Justice. 

Career & Education

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    • Harvard University, A.B., cum laude
    • The George Washington University Law School, J.D., with honors
    • Harvard University, A.B., cum laude
    • The George Washington University Law School, J.D., with honors
    • District of Columbia
    • Maryland
    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • U.S. Court of Federal Claims
    • District of Columbia
    • Maryland
    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • U.S. Court of Federal Claims
  • Professional Activities and Memberships

    • American Bar Association, Section of Public Contract Law (Vice Chair of Bid Protest Committee, 2018-2021)

    Professional Activities and Memberships

    • American Bar Association, Section of Public Contract Law (Vice Chair of Bid Protest Committee, 2018-2021)

Robert's Insights

Client Alert | 3 min read | 02.14.24

The Agency’s Email Server Ate My Proposal! – GAO Rejects Challenge to “Late is Late” Rule

Offerors understand that missing a submission deadline can sink even the best proposal because “late is late.”  But what happens when an offeror timely emails its proposal only to have an agency server reject it without any notification to the offeror?  GAO’s recent decision in Guidehouse, Inc., B-422115.2, Jan. 19, 2024, says that the proposal is still late and emphasizes the potentially draconian impact of the “late is late” rule....

Representative Matters

Published Bid Protest Wins as Protester

  • Successfully protested a corrective action taken in response to a meritless GAO protest, resulting in the reinstatement of the client’s original award without recompetition. See Superior Optical Labs, Inc. v. U.S., 152 Fed. Cl. 319 (2021), aff’d, 2021 WL 2879047 (Fed. Cir. July 9, 2021).
  • Prevented the Department of Veterans Affairs from transitioning contracts away from service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. See Superior Optical Labs, Inc. v. U.S., 150 Fed. Cl. 681 (2020).
  • Overturned a contractor’s exclusion from a nearly $1 billion IT procurement. See Knight Point Systems, LLC, B 418746, Aug. 24, 2020, 2020 CPD ¶ 314.

Published Bid Protest Wins as Intervenor

  • Successfully defended at trial and on appeal a roughly $250 million award for security and transportation services. See G4S Secure Solutions (USA), Inc. v. U.S., 146 Fed. Cl. 265 (2019), aff’d, 829 F. App’x 518 (Fed. Cir. 2020).
  • Successfully defended at trial and on appeal against organizational conflict of interest allegations in the Department of Defense’s $10 billion Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure procurement. See Oracle Am., Inc. v. U.S., 144 Fed. Cl. 88 (2019), aff’d, 975 F.3d 1279 (Fed. Cir. 2020).
  • Successfully defended the Defense Health Agency’s $17.7 billion award for managed care support services under the DoD TRICARE program. See UnitedHealth Military & Veterans Servs., LLC, et al., B-411837.2 et al., Nov. 9, 2016, 2016 CPD ¶ 329; UnitedHealth Military & Veterans Servs., LLC v. U.S., 132 Fed. Cl. 529 (2017).

Unpublished Matters

  • Represented contractors in ASBCA arbitration and mediation proceedings concerning performance and termination disputes under commercial item and energy savings performance contracts.
  • Counseled clients regarding cost accumulation and allocation issues in connection with pending or potential litigation.
  • Conducted internal investigations involving, inter alia, Procurement Integrity Act, mandatory disclosure, and False Claims Act matters.

Robert's Insights

Client Alert | 3 min read | 02.14.24

The Agency’s Email Server Ate My Proposal! – GAO Rejects Challenge to “Late is Late” Rule

Offerors understand that missing a submission deadline can sink even the best proposal because “late is late.”  But what happens when an offeror timely emails its proposal only to have an agency server reject it without any notification to the offeror?  GAO’s recent decision in Guidehouse, Inc., B-422115.2, Jan. 19, 2024, says that the proposal is still late and emphasizes the potentially draconian impact of the “late is late” rule....

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Robert's Insights

Client Alert | 3 min read | 02.14.24

The Agency’s Email Server Ate My Proposal! – GAO Rejects Challenge to “Late is Late” Rule

Offerors understand that missing a submission deadline can sink even the best proposal because “late is late.”  But what happens when an offeror timely emails its proposal only to have an agency server reject it without any notification to the offeror?  GAO’s recent decision in Guidehouse, Inc., B-422115.2, Jan. 19, 2024, says that the proposal is still late and emphasizes the potentially draconian impact of the “late is late” rule....