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Widespread WOSB and EDWOSB Contracting Problems

Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 06.26.18

A recent SBA OIG report found that the overwhelming majority – 50 out of 56 contracts reviewed – of Woman-Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs) sole source awards were awarded improperly. The SBA OIG found that the SBA generally failed to comply with a 2015 NDAA requirement moving WOSBs and Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Businesses (EDWOSBs) from a self-certification system to a third party-run certification system. The SBA OIG faulted the agency for failing to implement a government-run certification program and for permitting the improper award of contracts to firms that self-certify. The SBA OIG called on the agency to implement a government-run certification program for WOSBs and EDWOSBs, among other recommendations.

Insights

Client Alert | 7 min read | 10.22.26

Africa, MENA, and the Arbitration Act 2025: LCIA’s Latest Report

The LCIA's 2025 Annual Casework Report contains a finding that should command the attention of any business with commercial exposure to Africa or the Middle East. Participation from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) rose to almost 15% of the LCIA's caseload in 2025, and the UAE alone is now the third most represented jurisdiction globally, overtaking every non-Anglophone jurisdiction in the world.[1] That shift did not happen in isolation. It coincided with the entry into force of the Arbitration Act 2025 (the 2025 Act) — the most significant reform of English arbitration law in a generation — and a dramatic surge in parties deploying the LCIA's procedural toolkit more aggressively than ever before.[2]...