We negotiated an early settlement for 85% of the amount claimed and avoided the cost and risk of litigation.
Our client was awarded a contract by FEMA to provide disaster relief services when and where requested across the United States. The government’s administration of the contract continually changed, with several different contracting officers and contracting officer’s representatives assigned to the contract at different times. As a result, FEMA’s procedures for ordering and tracking work failed. That failure resulted in our client performing a significant amount of work for which it was never paid.
The client filed a claim, but FEMA failed to issue a final decision and we appealed to the Court of Federal Claims. After we filed the complaint, but before the answer was due, we happened to be defending a deposition at the Department of Justice in a different case. After that deposition was finished, we walked down the hall, met with the DOJ attorney responsible for this case and discussed the merits of the claim. Those discussions lead to settlement negotiations and, as a result, we were able to settle the case for 85% of the claim amount before the government even filed an answer.
