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Agency Must Discuss Evaluated Weaknesses

Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 09.14.04

In defending its award decision before the GAO in Cygnus Corp., Inc. (Dec. 30, 2003), the National Institutes of Health ("NIH") cited a number of weaknesses in the protester's proposal, but had failed to raise those same weaknesses with the protester during discussions. NIH compounded this error by suggesting in discussions that the protester had adequately resolved a number of other problems also cited by the agency as a basis for the award decision, and the GAO recommended another round of discussions, offers, and a reevaluation.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 07.10.26

Federal Circuit Clarifies Application of Blue & Gold: Proposal Submission Deadline, Not Award, is the Operative Time for Filing

In Utech, Inc. v. United States, No. 24-1586 (Fed. Cir. June 24, 2026), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit clarified that in most cases, a pre-award protest must be filed before the proposal submission deadline to avoid the Blue & Gold waiver rule.  This decision, while nonprecedential, is in line with U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) precedent, which has long held that pre-award protests must be filed before the proposal submission deadline....