In a recent Law360 article, I discussed Boeing’s status as a federal contractor following the company’s guilty plea related to the fraud charges stemming from safety violations of its 737 Max 8 airplane. Although Boeing is one of the government’s top contractors for its work with the Department of Defense in terms of dollar value, the guilty plea could result in possible suspension or debarment from future federal contracts.
“There are some who would say that … large contractors don’t get debarred in the same sort of numbers as smaller companies do, because the government needs them,” I explained in the article. “Large contractors do get debarred or suspended from time to time, though.”
With a deferred prosecution agreement in place for several years prior to Boeing’s guilty plea — an agreement the U.S. Department of Justice said the company breached — the company has likely already had a number of conversations with the government about reasons why it shouldn’t be suspended from contracting, such as the more than $455 million it agreed to pay to strengthen its compliance and safety programs as part of its plea deal, I said.
The full article, “Boeing’s Federal Contracts At Risk After Guilty Plea,” was published by Law360 on July 8 and is available online.