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Whistleblower Protections Are Here to Stay

Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 12.29.16

President Obama has signed Public Law 114-261, which makes permanent the current whistleblower protection pilot program and standardizes its protections across agencies. In this blog post, Crowell & Moring lawyers David Robbins and Christine Hawes revisit best practices and current developments in defending whistleblower reprisal investigations run by Offices of Inspectors General.

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Client Alert | 4 min read | 09.15.26

GAO Indicates Reasonable Conflict of Interest Investigation Must Include Inquiry of Involved Firm

The U.S. Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) recent decision in Viderity Inc.—Costs, B-424422.5, Sept. 1, 2026, offers useful insight into what constitutes a legally sufficient conflict of interest investigation. The decision arose in an unusual procedural posture: Viderity initially protested, alleging that an agency evaluator had a personal conflict of interest. After the agency took corrective action, Viderity filed a cost entitlement claim requesting that GAO direct the agency to reimburse Viderity’s protest costs. In evaluating that claim, GAO assessed whether Viderity’s underlying protest ground was “clearly meritorious.”...