Government Contract Law

Course Description

This FAI-compliant course discusses the impact of the legal system on the process of Government contracting. A variety of topics are covered, including the legal framework in which the contracting process is conducted, various federal statutes that affect the contracting process, the variety of regulations that govern the process, and the impact of judicial and administrative review on Government contracting.

Text material and instructor lecture is heavily augmented by case studies and practical problems that allow the student to not only understand the numerous legal concepts and ideas brought up in the course, but to see them applied to actual situations in which the student is required to apply laws and/or regulations to a set of facts and determine appropriate legal conclusions.

The target audience for this course consists of personnel involved in the contract specialist (GS-1102) career path. Others interested in Government contracting could also benefit.

ACE Credit Recommendation

In the lower division baccalaureate degree category, 3 semester hours in Business Administration, Federal Acquisition, Public Administration, Procurement Management, or Purchasing.

Prerequisites

To ensure success, we recommend that students have completed the following courses:
Acquisition Planning I, Contract Formation I, Contract Administration I, Price Analysis, Cost Analysis, Federal Contract Negotiation, Acquisition Planning II, Contract Formation II,Contract Administration II, and Intermediate Contract Pricing.

Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• Define the elements of a contract and the Federal Governments authority to contract
• Describe the law of agency
• Identify basic statutes, regulations, case law, and administrative law that define the federal acquisition system
• Identify sources of commercial terms and conditions
• Recognize and avoid situations having legal liabilityCourse Content

Course Content

Lesson 1: Introduction to Government Contract Law and Business Ethnics

• Describe the constitutional, statutory, and common law framework for government contracting.
• Describe business ethics and standards of conduct that apply to the practice of government contracting.

Lesson 2: General Contract Elements, Principles, and Authority

• Review the elements of contract formation.
• Describe provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) that apply to contract formation in the commercial marketplace as they relate to the intentions of the parties that seek to enter the contractual relationship.
• Examine how the unique status of the government affects the authority of its representatives to form contracts.

Lesson 3: Government Contract Formation

• Describe methods of forming contracts (e.g., sealed bidding; negotiation; commercial vs. non-commercial variations on contract award).
• Explain the principles of law and policy related to each method.

Lesson 4: Protests

• Discuss the forms for deciding protests.
• Describe the policies and procedures of each forum for such matters as eligibility to file a protest, the standard of review of the agency’s action, and the effect of the forum’s decision.

Lesson 5: Property

• Describe the concept of property: Its types, its characteristics, and methods of transfer and use.
• Describe title to property, bailment, and various types of intellectual property.
• Explain how certain contract clauses operate to refine and shape the legal positions of the parities in relation to the ownership, use and transfer of property.

Lesson 6: Funding Contracts and Fiscal Matters

• Describe the various legal facets of fiscal management and funding.
• Identify problems involved and some of the means of resolving those problems.

Lesson 7: Labor, Social, Economic, and Environmental Concerns

• Describe the legal obligations of contracting officers for implementing labor, social, economic, and environmental policies that directly or indirectly apply to Federal contracting and the limitations on their role in administering those policies.

Lesson 8: Fraud

• Define and describe acts of fraud.
• Identify the Federal statutes, and methods to implement those statutes, that the government can use in affirmative litigation to prosecute firms that may be engaged in illegal practices related to government contracting.

Lesson 9: Inspection, Delivery, Acceptance, and Warranties

• Examine inspection, delivery, acceptance, and warranties with a view toward interpreting and defining contract compliance with respect to quality.

Lesson 10: Changes

• Describe the modification or alteration of government contracts.
• Describe the various approaches to measuring the “equitable adjustment”.

Lesson 11: Contract Disputes

• Describe the process for resolving disputes that arise in connection with the performance of government contracts.
• Discuss the evolution of that process.

Lesson 12: Terminations

• Describe the authority, reasons, procedure, and applications of terminations
  Students may be able to split the course into two 1-week courses. Please call for details.