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Statute Of Limitations Invalidates Government Claim For The First Time

Client Alert | 1 min read | 12.18.09

For apparently the first time, the Contract Disputes Act's six-year statute of limitations has been judicially enforced to defeat a government claim. In McDonnell Services, Inc.(Dec. 2, 2009), the ASBCA dismissed the government's argument that its claims should be treated more generously than contractors' claims under the CDA statute of limitations and went on to rule that an Air Force Contracting Officer's final decisions were time-barred and a "nullity" because DCAA and the Air Force, through a series of audit reports beginning as early as 1998, "had established the basis for" the government's defective pricing claim, including putative damages, "well before, and definitely not later than" six years before the CO's June 2008 final decisions.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 04.25.24

JUST RELEASED: EPA’s Bold New Strategic Civil-Criminal Enforcement Collaboration Policy

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) just issued its new Strategic Civil-Criminal Enforcement Policy, setting the stage for the new manner in which the agency manages its pollution investigations. David M. Uhlmann, the head of OECA, signed the Policy memorandum on April 17, 2024, in order to ensure that EPA’s civil and criminal enforcement offices collaborate efficiently and consistently in cases across the nation. The Policy states, “EPA must exercise enforcement discretion reasonably when deciding whether a particular matter warrants criminal, civil, or administrative enforcement. Criminal enforcement should be reserved for the most egregious violations.” Uhlmann repeated this statement during a luncheon on April 23, 2024, while also emphasizing the new level of energy this collaborative effort has brought to the enforcement programs....