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Federal Circuit Reaffirms Deferential OCI Standard

Client Alert | 1 min read | 05.06.09

The Federal Circuit in Axiom Resource Mgmt., Inc. v. U.S. (May 4, 2009) reversed the CFC decision granting a protest on the basis of an organization conflict of interest ("OCI"), and, in doing so, reaffirmed that, when the CFC reviews an OCI determination by a CO, including, in this case, the adequacy of a mitigation plan, it must apply the deferential "arbitrary and capricious" standard of the Administrative Procedure Act. In addition, the appellate court criticized the CFC for accepting litigation affidavits and relying on them when there was no need to supplement the administrative record, along the way casting doubt on the vitality of the Esch factors commonly used by the CFC in deciding whether to supplement an agency record in a bid protest case.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 02.11.26

Clicking All the Right Boxes: FTC Moves to Revive “Click-to-Cancel” Rule Following Eighth Circuit Vacatur

On July 8, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacated the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Rule Concerning Subscriptions and Other Negative Option Plans, commonly known as the “Click-to-Cancel” rule. As detailed in a previous client alert, the rule was intended to regulate negative option plans[1]— such as subscriptions and automatic renewals — by imposing stringent requirements on businesses, including streamlined cancellation processes and enhanced disclosure obligations. The Eighth Circuit vacated the Click-to-Cancel rule because it found that the FTC had failed to comply with mandatory procedural requirements. As a result, the rule is no longer in effect, and businesses are not currently subject to its mandates....