Insights

Washington – February 22, 2019: Crowell & Moring LLP is pleased to announce that its Government Contracts Group has been recognized as one of Law360’s “Practice Groups of the Year” for government contracts. This is the ninth consecutive year that the group has earned this honor.

As we previously reported, on January 16, 2026, the Department of War (DoW) announced an audit of 8(a) sole source awards over $20 million, joining the previously-announced audits by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and U.S. Treasury Department (discussed here and here).  A DoW memorandum also dated January 16, 2026 but only recently made public reveals that this audit is much broader in than originally announced.  Any active 8(a) sole source contract, 8(a) set-aside contract, or small business set-aside contract over $20 million is under scrutiny. 

The Small Business Administration (SBA) has rolled out changes to its 8(a) Program even as it suspends 8(a) participants for failure to respond to the SBA’s December 5, 2025 8(a) audit letters.

On January 16, 2026, U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth posted a video on social media outlining the U.S. Department of War’s (DoW) plan to combat fraud, waste, and abuse in the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 8(a) Business Development Program. 

The federal government has identified purported ‘waste, fraud, and abuse’ in small business programs as a major focus of its current enforcement efforts. As it relates to federal procurement, we have seen audits and investigations rolled out not only of active participants in the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program but also reviews of various types of small business contracts (such as 8(a) sole source and set-aside awards, preference-based awards, and small business set-aside awards over particular values). Join Crowell & Moring as we discuss what aspects of contract performance and teaming arrangements are being scrutinized (e.g., size/status eligibility, limitations on subcontracting compliance, reasonableness of market rates, etc.) and how these considerations can impact both small government contractors holding the prime contracts under review and their subcontractors. 

September 22, 2025; 12:00pm-1:00pmDevelopments in Caselaw Impacting Small Business Gov Con IssuesSpeakers: Olivia Lynch, Zachary Schroeder, Issac Schabes, Cherie OwenCrowell & Moring will address recent decisions from the Small Business Administration’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, Government Accountability Office, and Court of Federal Claims covering a range of topics including but not limited to: challenges involving size and status based on ostensible subcontractor affiliation; protests of awards to mentor-protégé joint ventures based on questions regarding the mentor-protégé agreement and joint venture corporate governance documents; protests concerning the evaluation of joint venture capabilities and past performance; protests of the evaluation of small business participation plans; and application of the Rule of Two.

Crowell & Moring’s “All Things Protest” podcast keeps you up to date on major trends in bid protest litigation, key developments in high-profile cases, and best practices in state and federal procurement. In this episode, Crowell's Christian Curran, Zachary Schroeder, and Bryan Dewan cover two recent protests at the Court of Federal Claims— Advantaged Solutions, Inc. v. United States (Feb. 6, 2026), and Gemini Tech Services LLC v. United States (Feb. 5, 2026)—that deal with corrective action and share key takeaways for the contracting community.

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Crowell & Moring’s “All Things Protest” podcast keeps you up to date on major trends in bid protest litigation, key developments in high-profile cases, and best practices in state and federal procurement. In this episode, Crowell's Christian Curran, Zachary Schroeder, and Bryan Dewan cover two recent protests that both emphasize the continued importance of filing timely at GAO while highlighting significant rules and nuances that may trip up protestors.