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Allowability of IR&D Costs: Dis-inflation Run Amok

Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 03.09.11

DOD has issued a proposed amendment to DFARS 231.205-18 (Mar. 2, 2011) that would condition the allowability of independent research and development costs on the reporting of unspecified information about individual projects at least annually and again on completion of projects, using DOD on-line reporting forms. The proposed rule would apply to all contractors with annual IR&D costs in excess of $50,000, an amount that is less than 1% of the threshold in effect in 1990 for reporting IR&D projects under the prior regulatory regime, a mandatory reporting requirement that was completely abolished in 1996.

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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....