News

Moore & Lee is pleased to welcome Michael Dockins as a summer associate.  Michael, who was formerly a paralegal at Moore & Lee, has just finished his first year at the University of Texas School of Law.

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently determined that the filing of a mechanic’s lien does not waive a party’s right to insist on the satisfaction of contractual conditions precedent to filing suit.  In Dominion Transmission, Inc. v. Precision Pipeline, Inc., 2013 WL 5962939, a contractor and a utility company entered into an agreement for the construction of a pipeline in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Read More…

It is well established that in a fixed-price contract, the contractor bears the risk that the actual costs of performance may exceed the contract price.  The recent decision in Agility Defense & Government Services, Inc. v. United States highlights the importance of that principle, even in cases where it appears safe to assume that a price adjustment will be granted. Read More…

In a recent opinion, the Federal Circuit limited the federal government’s ability to shift the risk of differing site conditions to a contractor.  In Metcalf Construction Co., Inc. v. United States, 742 F.3d 984 (Fed. Cir. 2014), the government rejected a design-build contractor’s claim for additional compensation arising from the discovery of differing site conditions. Read More…

The GAO’s recent Bid Protest Annual Report to Congress shows that bid protesters have succeeded most often when challenging process-related issues, rather than the reasonableness of the agency’s decision.  The annual report indicates that successful bid protests most commonly addressed: (1) failure to follow solicitation criteria; (2) unequal treatment; (3) inadequate documentation; and (4) unreasonable price and/or cost evaluations.  Read More…

On December 26, 2013, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2014 was signed into law. That law, along with broader ranging Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 (BBA), will impact government contracting in a number of ways, including new requirements for contracting with suspended/debarred entities, new requirements for small business acknowledgements and new regulations requiring prime contractors to review and monitor subcontractors’ subcontract plans.  Read More…

Alternative dispute resolution clauses requiring mediation as a condition precedent to litigation are common in construction contracts.  While most courts hold that such ADR clauses do not impact a party’s right to file a mechanic’s lien, a recent decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland found differently. Read More…

A Virginia court recently determined that a subcontractor’s bond claim that named the surety, but not the principal, was improper.  After a subcontractor provided equipment and materials to a general contractor on a construction project, a dispute arose over payment.  The subcontractor filed a mechanic’s lien which was then bonded off by the general contractor.  The subcontractor then commenced litigation against the surety on the bond.  Read More…

In July 2013, the Virginia legislature amended the Virginia mechanic’s lien statute, which may impact contractors seeking a mechanic’s lien.  Va. Code. Ann. §43-1, et. seq. Contractors seeking mechanics’ liens must now demonstrate that they are licensed to perform the work and will forfeit their right to file a mechanic’s lien for unpaid work if they are unlicensed. Read More…

Moore & Lee recently represented a defense contractor seeking recovery for the increased price of fuel that was required for its performance under a government contract.  The defense contractor was contracted with the government to produce missiles.  The supply and price of the required fuel for the missiles was controlled by a separate government entity.  On appeal, the ASBCA held that the contractor could recover from one government entity for the actions of a separate government entity based on the close relationship between the entities.  The Board examined the relationship between the two entities and found that there was a close relationship or “significant bond” between the two such that one entity’s action to increase the price of fuel was imputed to the other.  Raytheon Missile Systems, ASBCA No. 57596, 2013 WL 1313461.