In a per curiam, unpublished decision in In re Fluor Intercontinental, Inc., issued on March 25, 2020, the Fourth Circuit has provided some valuable guidance concerning how companies may avoid waivers of the attorney-client privilege when making disclosures to the government after privileged internal investigations. While the decision is non-precedential even within the Fourth Circuit, it reinforces the legal and policy reasons for allowing such disclosures to occur without mandating waiver of underlying privileged…

The General Services Administration (GSA) recently launched a website dedicated to Coronavirus Acquisition-Related Information and Resources. It’s our understanding that the website will be updated regularly and will create a helpful catalogue of public facing guidance, policies, frequently asked questions, and other information generated by federal government agencies on COVID-19-related procurement matters. In addition, the website allows the public to ask general coronavirus acquisition related question. As of March 24, 2020, the website provides links…

Virginia law enforcement agencies have created a new task force to address the increased threats of fraud associated with the COVID-19 outbreak. Specifically, the Virginia Coronavirus Fraud Task Force is a joint federal and state initiative that will be led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin G. Cooke in the Eastern District of Virginia, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Baudinet in the Western District, and fraud investigators from the FBI and Virginia State Police. The mission of…

On March 19, 2020 the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) issued Memorandum M-20-17, “Administrative Relief for Recipients and Applicants of Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) due to Loss of Operations.”  The memorandum details the administrative relief available to an expanded scope of grant recipients and applicants, both by reminding federal agencies of existing authority to issue exceptions to grant requirements and authorizing agencies to take additional action as appropriate…

As signaled as a possibility in its March 9, 2020 guidance in Memorandum M-20-11, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued Memorandum M-20-17 on March 19 to provide short term administrative, financial management and audit relief from the 2 CFR Part 200 Uniform Guidance requirements to a broader scope of recipients of grants and Federal financial assistance that are affected by the COVID-19 crisis.  Importantly, this OMB guidance authorizes awarding agencies to grant…

On March 20, 2020, the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) released guidance to agencies heads on managing federal contract performance issues impacted by COVID-19 [Linked here: M-20-18]. The memo and attached Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQs”) focus on the following main issues: Telework: agencies are encouraged to maximize telework for contractor employees, wherever possible, to enable continued contract performance consistent with the health and safety of contractor and government personnel.  This includes modifying contracts…

Following the March 19, 2020 guidance issued by the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) on “essential” critical infrastructure workers during COVID-19, the Department of Defense (DoD) issued a memorandum today reiterating that the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) is identified as a critical infrastructure sector by DHS, and that those who work in such sectors are expected to maintain normal work schedules. The DHS guidance identified the DIB essential critical infrastructure…