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Agency's Corrective Action Based Upon GAO Recommendation Reasonable

Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 03.06.09

In ASRC Research & Tech. Solutions, LLC (Aug. 21, 2008), GAO determined that NASA conducted flawed technical and past performance evaluations and recommended a limited re-evaluation that ultimately led to a contract award to the protester (represented by C&M). The awardee in the first competition fought to turn the tables on ARTS in a subsequent protest before the CFC, but ARTS successfully defended the award in SP Systems, Inc. v. United States (Feb. 11, 2009), in which the Court found that, although NASA could have taken other corrective actions, NASA's decision to follow GAO's recommendation strictly was reasonable.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 04.14.26

DOJ’s False Claims Act Resolution Against IBM Signals Heightened Risk for Federal Contractors with DEI Programs

On Friday, April 10, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) has agreed to pay just over $17 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act (FCA) by failing to comply with federal anti-discrimination requirements incorporated into its federal contracts due to allegedly discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) employment practices. This resolution marks the first FCA settlement secured by the DOJ under its Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, created in May 2025, and announced by then-Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as part of the administration’s coordinated efforts to target allegedly unlawful DEI practices. Per the agreement, the settlement is neither an admission of liability by IBM nor a concession by the United States that its claims are not well founded....