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Expedited Contract Closeouts – A Fast Track Available to Select Older Contracts

Client Alert | 1 min read | 05.28.19

On April 30, 2019, the Department of Defense (DoD) issued a final rule, effective immediately, amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to permit expedited closeout of certain contracts (or groups of contracts) through modification of such contracts without completing a reconciliation audit or other corrective action. The new provision—which implements section 836 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 and section 824 of the NDAA for FY 2018—applies when: (1) the contract was entered into on a date that is at least 17 fiscal years before the current fiscal year; (2) there are no further supplies or services due under the contract; and (3) a determination has been made that the contract records are not otherwise reconcilable because either (a) the contract or related payments records have been destroyed or lost, or (b) the time and effort required to establish the exact amount owed is disproportionate to the amount at issue. To accomplish closeout of such contracts, the final rule permits negotiated settlements with the contractor and remaining contract balances to be offset with balances within the contract or on other contracts irrespective of the year, the type of appropriation obligated to fund each contract or contract line item, and regardless of whether the appropriation has closed.

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Client Alert | 5 min read | 12.12.25

Eleventh Circuit Hears Argument on False Claims Act Qui Tam Constitutionality

On the morning of December 12, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit heard argument in United States ex rel. Zafirov v. Florida Medical Associates, LLC, et al., No. 24-13581 (11th Cir. 2025). This case concerns the constitutionality of the False Claims Act (FCA) qui tam provisions and a groundbreaking September 2024 opinion in which the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida held that the FCA’s qui tam provisions were unconstitutional under Article II. See United States ex rel. Zafirov v. Fla. Med. Assocs., LLC, 751 F. Supp. 3d 1293 (M.D. Fla. 2024). That decision, penned by District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, was the first success story for a legal theory that has been gaining steam ever since Justices Thomas, Barrett, and Kavanaugh indicated they would be willing to consider arguments about the constitutionality of the qui tam provisions in U.S. ex rel. Polansky v. Exec. Health Res., 599 U.S. 419 (2023). In her opinion, Judge Mizelle held (1) qui tam relators are officers of the U.S. who must be appointed under the Appointments Clause; and (2) historical practice treating qui tam and similar relators as less than “officers” for constitutional purposes was not enough to save the qui tam provisions from the fundamental Article II infirmity the court identified. That ruling was appealed and, after full briefing, including by the government and a bevy of amici, the litigants stepped up to the plate this morning for oral argument....

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