Aug 2011 , Vol. VI, No.1

Companies Should be Cautious of Deadlines for Bid Protests

Companies use bid protests to obtain contract awards. Filing the right protest at the right time is crucial and could allow a company to turn a loss into a victory. Even if the company does not have a policy of protesting, it may still have to defend a contract against a protest by a competitor. Thus, understanding the timing guidelines is crucial but can be confusing.

The ideal case is where a company wants to file a protest during the solicitation process, perhaps challenging the technical requirements of a request for proposal (RFP) that the vendor believes has been drafted to a favor a competitor. The deadline for the protest is simply the due date for the government’s receipt of proposals. So a company should file the protest by the date the proposals are due. 

Unfortunately, the most common type of bid protest does not have such a simple deadline. The most common type of bid protest is the protest by an unsuccessful vendor after learning at the end of the solicitation process that it has lost the contract. The number of days that a vendor has to file a protest depends on many factors including the jurisdiction and type of procurement that is being bid on.  The unsuccessful vendor undoubtedly wants there to be an automatic stay of contract performance. To get the automatic stay, the unsuccessful vendor must file the protest generally within a certain amount of days after the required debriefing, however to get an automatic stay on a federal project it may be necessary to protest before the deadline. However, an early protest for a state project may be dismissed as premature.

As is evident from this article, the deadlines for filing bid protests can be complicated. It is therefore essential that vendors take the time to understand them.  Companies should keep this general proposition in mind – if anything is apparently wrong during solicitation, it must be protested BEFORE bidding and within the applicable deadlines AFTER bidding.

If you have any questions related to deadlines for filing bid protests or any other construction-related matters, please contact Mike Sterling at MSterling@vanblk.com.

 Articled authored by attorney Mike Sterling and law clerk Sonia Patel.  These articles are meant to bring awareness to these topics and are not intended to be used as legal advice.  For more information, contact Bill Franczek or Mike Sterling at 757-446-8600.  Visit www.vanblk.com, for our library of Construction Law Tips.  Suggestions for a topic? E-mail bfranczek@vanblk.com.
 

Aug 2011 , Vol. VI, No.1

Companies Should be Cautious of Deadlines for Bid Protests

Authored by attorney Mike Sterling and law clerk Sonia Patel.  

Companies use bid protests to obtain contract awards. Filing the right protest at the right time is crucial and could allow a company to turn a loss into a victory. Even if the company does not have a policy of protesting, it may still have to defend a contract against a protest by a competitor. Thus, understanding the timing guidelines is crucial but can be confusing.
 

The ideal case is where a company wants to file a protest during the solicitation process, perhaps challenging the technical requirements of a request for proposal (RFP) that the vendor believes has been drafted to a favor a competitor. The deadline for the protest is simply the due date for the government’s receipt of proposals. So a company should file the protest by the date the proposals are due. 
 

Unfortunately, the most common type of bid protest does not have such a simple deadline. The most common type of bid protest is the protest by an unsuccessful vendor after learning at the end of the solicitation process that it has lost the contract. The number of days that a vendor has to file a protest depends on many factors including the jurisdiction and type of procurement that is being bid on.  The unsuccessful vendor undoubtedly wants there to be an automatic stay of contract performance. To get the automatic stay, the unsuccessful vendor must file the protest generally within a certain amount of days after the required debriefing, however to get an automatic stay on a federal project it may be necessary to protest before the deadline. However, an early protest for a state project may be dismissed as premature.
 

As is evident from this article, the deadlines for filing bid protests can be complicated. It is therefore essential that vendors take the time to understand them.  Companies should keep this general proposition in mind – if anything is apparently wrong during solicitation, it must be protested BEFORE bidding and within the applicable deadlines AFTER bidding.
 

If you have any questions related to deadlines for filing bid protests or any other construction-related matters, please contact Mike Sterling at MSterling@vanblk.com.

Article authored by attorney Mike Sterling and law clerk Sonia Patel.  These articles are meant to bring awareness to these topics and are not intended to be used as legal advice.
For more information, contact Mike at 757-446-8626 or Bill Franczek at 757-446-8600.
Visit www.vanblk.com, for our library of Construction Law Tips.  Suggestions for a topic? E-mail bfranczek@vanblk.com.