Bid Protests

Our managing attorney is an experienced bid protest lawyer who has earned clients several corrective actions. He has also successfully defended awards against protesting offerors on behalf of clients who were awarded contracts.

You may have the right to challenge an improper award. Strict deadlines and other requirements apply at GAO and Court of Federal Claims. Call today.

GovSpring can also help maximize the value of debriefings, but you will need to ensure you qualify for a debriefing and understand the applicable deadlines.

Call Now for Immediate Help: (202) 609-7501

Or Email: info@govspringlegal.com

Why Protest a Proposed Award?

You may consider protesting an award for several reasons, including (among others):

  • Flawed Technical or Past Performance Evaluations: The agency ignored strengths, invented weaknesses, or treated offerors unequally.
  • Unreasonable Best-Value Tradeoff: The agency's "best value" decision was poorly documented or irrational.
  • Misleading or Unequal Discussions: The agency failed to hold meaningful discussions or misled you about deficiencies.
  • Ambiguous or Unduly Restrictive Solicitations: The solicitation itself was flawed, preventing a fair competition.
  • Improper Evaluation of a Competitor's Proposal: The awardee should have been found non-compliant or ineligible, and other theories.

Does a Contractor Need an Attorney at GAO and COFC?

No, but one is strongly recommended. Both GAO and the Court of Federal Claims allow contractors to represent themselves in bid protests. Although it is possible, contractors who represent themselves face significantly more hurdles, due to lack of familiarity with processes, legal standards, and legal theories required to win. The overall sustain rate at GAO was 16% in 2024, down from 31% in 2023. While there is not data available for pro se (unrepresented) contractors, the success rate is likely much lower. GovSpring regularly reads and publishes bid protest decisions at all protest fora, and self-represented parties have not succeeded in any of our published reviews.

Here's how you might decide whether to retain an attorney.

How much is the dollar value of the contract?  For an award of approximately $2,000,000, depending on the strength of your case, it may be worth spending $50,000 in legal fees. This is more true as the complexity of the case increases. The alternative is no award at all.  This decision requires the exercise of business judgment by the contractor.

There are more reasons than not to retain an attorney for your bid protest:

  • Attorneys have access to protected information that self-represented parties do not, including the other bidders proposals, sensitive agency documents, and data that will be blacked out in the final decision. The contractor cannot be admitted to a protective order to view these documents, which may prove pivotal in the arguments you can make.
  • Attorneys have the required expertise to navigate a complex and unforgiving court system, where deadlines are usually strictly enforced.
  • Attorneys have the resources to review all of the relevant regulations and case law, which often requires access to specialized legal research software (GovSpring uses LexisNexis).
  • Attorneys have strategic insights that often guide their approach to litigation, based on years of training.

All that said, the cost of legal services can often be unreasonably high relative to the value of the award. The juice may not be worth the squeeze. GovSpring will let you know whether self-representation might be a good idea.

Immediate Intake & Strategic Assessment

Contact GovSpring once you suspect an issue. We will rapidly review your debriefing, the solicitation, and the award notice to provide an honest, upfront assessment of your protest grounds and likelihood of success.

Choosing the Right Protest Forum

You can protest an award at several forums:

  • Agency-Level Protest: A fast, cost-effective first step.
  • Government Accountability Office (GAO): The most common forum, offering an independent review and the powerful CICA stay.
  • Court of Federal Claims (COFC): The forum for complex, high-stakes litigation.

What Outcome Can I Expect?

While no attorney can guarantee a result, the GAO sustains approximately 15% of protests on the merits. However, nearly 50% of protesters obtain some form of relief (like corrective action) through a "Effectiveness Rate." GovSpring regularly publishes weekly roundups of bid protests at all of the forums, so will give you an honest assessment of your case's strengths and weaknesses.

Our ultimate goal is corrective action. This can include forcing the agency to:

  • Re-evaluate proposals.
  • Amend the solicitation and accept revised proposals.
  • Terminate the improper contract award.