1. Home
  2. |Insights
  3. |Deliver Uncompromised – or Else? DoD Considers Elevating Security in its Procurement Process

Deliver Uncompromised – or Else? DoD Considers Elevating Security in its Procurement Process

Client Alert | 1 min read | 08.14.18

Contractors may soon need to recalibrate their approach to DoD procurements. The Department recently announced that it is reviewing a strategy dubbed “Deliver Uncompromised,” which lays out recommendations for how it can better secure its vast and varied supply chain. Central to the strategy is an increased focus on security in the procurement process. A contractor’s overall security would join cost, performance, and schedule as key evaluation pillars – marking a significant shift in how contractors compete for work. The strategy recognizes, however, that its success would likely require increased incentives for the contracting community to invest in risk mitigation, including liability protections and tax incentives. Although only a proposal for now, the strategy is yet another indicator of the government’s broader emphasis on supply chain security. Just yesterday, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 was signed into law in record time, with several provisions focused on the same issue.  

Contacts

Insights

Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.21.25

A Sign of What’s to Come? Court Dismisses FCA Retaliation Complaint Based on Alleged Discriminatory Use of Federal Funding

On November 7, 2025, in Thornton v. National Academy of Sciences, No. 25-cv-2155, 2025 WL 3123732 (D.D.C. Nov. 7, 2025), the District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a False Claims Act (FCA) retaliation complaint on the basis that the plaintiff’s allegations that he was fired after blowing the whistle on purported illegally discriminatory use of federal funding was not sufficient to support his FCA claim. This case appears to be one of the first filed, and subsequently dismissed, following Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s announcement of the creation of the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative on May 19, 2025, which “strongly encourages” private individuals to file lawsuits under the FCA relating to purportedly discriminatory and illegal use of federal funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in violation of Executive Order 14173, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (Jan. 21, 2025). In this case, the court dismissed the FCA retaliation claim and rejected the argument that an organization could violate the FCA merely by “engaging in discriminatory conduct while conducting a federally funded study.” The analysis in Thornton could be a sign of how forthcoming arguments of retaliation based on reporting allegedly fraudulent DEI activity will be analyzed in the future....

View All Insights