If your Alabama business pursues work with federal agencies, you are operating in one of the most heavily regulated commercial environments that exists. The Federal Acquisition Regulation alone runs thousands of pages. Layer on agency-specific supplements, socioeconomic compliance requirements, cost accounting standards, and the ever-present risk of False Claims Act liability, and you have a legal landscape that demands serious attention.
Our Alabama federal contracting lawyer at Bachus, Brom & Taylor, LLC has represented contractors, subcontractors, and vendors in federal procurement matters for more than 20 years. We bring a practical understanding of how the federal procurement system works, what agencies look for in contractors, and how to resolve disputes when they arise. Contact our firm when you need a federal contracting attorney in Alabama.
Federal contracting law is not something you pick up casually. It requires sustained immersion in the regulatory framework and, ideally, experience working within the system itself.
Bryan M. Taylor brings exactly that combination. Government contracting is one of his primary practice areas. Bryan served as an Army JAG lawyer in the Alabama National Guard and earned the Bronze Star Medal during combat service in Iraq and Honduras. The American Bar Association recognized him with its Outstanding Young Military Lawyer Award. His military legal career gave him direct exposure to defense procurement and federal contract administration in operational environments. Beyond military service, Bryan was elected to the Alabama State Senate and held senior roles in three governors’ administrations, giving him a perspective on procurement at both the state and federal levels. He graduated from the University of Alabama in 1998 and earned his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law in 2001. He is licensed in Alabama and Texas.
Steven M. Brom practices administrative law and litigation, corporate governance, and public policy, all of which are directly relevant to federal contracting disputes. Steven is admitted to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States, in addition to the U.S. District Courts for all three Alabama districts. His ability to litigate at the federal level is essential for contractors facing disputes that escalate beyond the administrative process.
Our firm has served Alabama for over two decades.
The Federal Acquisition Regulation is the backbone of federal procurement. It governs everything from how agencies solicit bids to how disputes are resolved after contract award. Our attorneys work within this framework regularly and understand the procedural requirements, evaluation criteria, and compliance standards that determine outcomes in federal contracting.
Alabama is home to major federal installations, including Redstone Arsenal, Maxwell Air Force Base, and the Anniston Army Depot. The defense and aerospace industries drive significant federal contracting activity in the state. We represent Alabama businesses that compete for this work and help them navigate the regulatory requirements specific to defense procurement.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “I have known and worked with Steven for many years and he is a very knowledgeable attorney with the highest ethical standards.” – Craig Lewis
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Federal procurement spans every industry and every type of purchase the government makes. Our firm handles matters across the full federal contracting lifecycle.
Federal procurement is governed by a body of law that operates independently from Alabama’s state procurement code. Alabama businesses pursuing federal work must comply with the federal framework, not state procurement rules.
The Federal Acquisition Regulation, found at 48 CFR Chapter 1, is the primary regulation for all executive agency procurements. It covers the entire acquisition process, from planning and solicitation through contract administration and closeout. Agency-specific supplements, like the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), add additional requirements for certain types of work.
Under the Competition in Contracting Act, codified at 41 U.S.C. § 3301, federal agencies must obtain full and open competition for most procurements. Exceptions exist for sole-source awards, but agencies must justify these exceptions in writing.
The Contract Disputes Act at 41 U.S.C. § 7101 et seq. establishes the process for resolving contract disputes. Contractors must submit written claims to the contracting officer, who issues a final decision. Appeals go to the appropriate board of contract appeals or the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
Federal contractors must also comply with the False Claims Act, which imposes severe penalties for submitting false or fraudulent claims to the government. Alabama businesses that receive federal funds in any capacity should understand their exposure under this statute.
The System for Award Management is the federal government’s central registration system. All contractors must register in SAM.gov before receiving awards, and the system tracks performance information, exclusions, and other data that affects contracting eligibility.
The Government Accountability Office handles more bid protests than any other forum. GAO protests must be filed within specific timeframes, and the agency generally issues a decision within 100 days. The process involves detailed written submissions and, in some cases, hearings. A successful protest can result in the agency reevaluating proposals, reopening discussions, or making a new award. We handle GAO protests for Alabama contractors across all federal agencies.
Federal agencies evaluate contractors’ past performance as part of the source selection process. Negative evaluations can follow a contractor for years and affect competitiveness on future procurements. We advise contractors on how to address negative evaluations, file rebuttals in the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS), and present past performance in the strongest possible light.
Federal regulations prohibit contractors from holding positions that create unfair competitive advantages or impair their objectivity. Organizational conflict of interest (OCI) issues can disqualify a contractor from competing for an award or result in contract termination after award. We help Alabama businesses identify and mitigate OCI risks before they become problems, using the same analytical approach we bring to protecting business interests in all contexts.
Federal contractors, particularly those handling controlled unclassified information, face increasing cybersecurity compliance obligations. DFARS clauses require adherence to NIST SP 800-171 standards, and the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program adds another layer of requirements for defense contractors. Noncompliance can result in contract termination, False Claims Act liability, and loss of future contracting eligibility. We advise contractors on meeting these requirements and help businesses understand their intellectual property and data protection obligations.
A contractor who engages in fraud, serious contract performance failures, or certain other misconduct can be suspended or debarred from all federal contracting. This is essentially a death sentence for businesses that depend on government work. We represent Alabama contractors facing suspension and debarment proceedings and work aggressively to protect their ability to continue competing for federal awards.
Many federal procurements, particularly large ones, require contractors to team with other firms. Mentor-protégé arrangements, joint ventures, and teaming agreements all have specific regulatory requirements under the FAR and SBA rules. Getting the structure wrong can result in the team being found ineligible. We help Alabama businesses structure these arrangements to meet procurement rules while protecting each party’s contractual obligations.
Federal contracting offers significant opportunities for Alabama businesses, but the regulatory environment is demanding and the consequences of noncompliance are serious. Our attorneys have the government experience, the legal background, and the practical knowledge to represent you effectively in any federal contracting matter.
Contact us to schedule a consultation with an Alabama federal contracting attorney.
Few states feel the weight of federal procurement the way Alabama does. Its installations, led by Redstone Arsenal and joined by Maxwell Air Force Base and the Anniston Army Depot, pull in billions each year, and the Department of Defense logs that defense contract spending in its annual state-by-state report. The opportunity is not limited to primes with large workforces. Across the country, small firms captured more than $183 billion in federal prime awards during fiscal year 2024, which the Small Business Administration put at 28.8% of the federal total and above the 23% small business goal. That federal pipeline runs alongside the wider government contracting work open to Alabama vendors, and stepping into it means accepting a dense compliance burden.
Federal contract claims succeed or fail on procedure nearly as often as on merit. The mistakes below weaken otherwise valid claims, and most are avoidable with early attention to the contract and the record.
That varies with the work involved. Reviewing a solicitation before submission costs far less than litigating a protest at the Government Accountability Office or pursuing a certified claim before a board. We quote fees once we understand what the matter requires, and we put that figure in writing up front.
Many contractors prepare straightforward bids on their own. The difficulty increases with the dollars at stake and the complexity of the solicitation. When a proposal carries significant cost or competitive risk, a trained review of the terms, representations, and certifications can head off an expensive misstep.
Registration in the federal award system is a prerequisite for nearly any agency contract, and it has to stay current. A lapse can stall payment or knock you out of an award. The record attached to that registration also follows your business into later competitions, so accuracy counts as much as timing.
A challenge can go to one of three forums: the agency that made the award, the Government Accountability Office, or the Court of Federal Claims. They differ in speed, cost, and the kind of record each builds. The right pick depends on your goal, the strength of your grounds, and how much time is left.
The deadlines are unforgiving. An objection to the ground rules of a solicitation has to be raised before bids close. For most other grounds, the window is ten days from the point you learned, or reasonably should have learned, of the issue. Act later, and the protest is likely dismissed as untimely.
It begins with a written claim to the contracting officer, who must issue a decision. A contractor dissatisfied with that decision can take it to a board of contract appeals or the Court of Federal Claims, and an unfavorable ruling there can still go up on appellate review to the Federal Circuit.
Very. Liability can reach three times the government’s damages, plus a penalty for each false claim, and the statute can reach careless errors, not just deliberate fraud. The practical defense is mundane: bill only for what you performed, support every cost, and never certify something you have not verified.
A portion of federal work is reserved for small businesses and for specific groups, among them HUBZone, 8(a), and service-disabled veteran-owned firms. Qualifying is not automatic. Size is measured against industry standards, and affiliation with other companies can quietly push you over the line, so check your status before you count on a set-aside.
The governing rulebooks are separate. Federal buys run under the Federal Acquisition Regulation, while state contracting answers to Alabama’s procurement code. Bid thresholds, protest venues, and reporting duties all shift depending on which government is buying. A contractor working both sides also has to keep any state licensing current.
Either one cuts off new federal awards while it is in effect, which can be devastating for a company built on government work. The grounds run from performance failures to integrity findings. We step in early, contest the proposed action where there is a basis, and work on the regulation and compliance problems that set it off.
It can. A standard change clause lets the contracting officer direct work within the general scope, and refusing a proper change is usually not an option. What you do receive is a right to an equitable adjustment in price or time, provided you give prompt notice and document the impact. That remedy looks nothing like anything in private commercial law.
We do, on either side of the relationship. Federal projects stack flow-down clauses, notice rules, and Miller Act payment bond rights on top of an ordinary agreement, which changes how a payment or scope dispute proceeds. Years spent protecting business interests in court inform how we handle these matters.
Tell us what you are facing. A short conversation about the solicitation, the contract, or the dispute lets us flag the deadlines that matter and map out the next move. The earlier that happens, the wider the range of options available to you.
These matters rarely reach a state courthouse. A protest is considered at the agency, the Government Accountability Office, or the Court of Federal Claims. A contract claim starts with the contracting officer and, if it goes further, moves to a board of contract appeals or the Court of Federal Claims, with the Federal Circuit hearing appeals from there. Because each route carries its own deadlines and procedures, pinning down the right one early can decide how the rest of the case unfolds.
A handful of organizations support Alabama companies that want to register for and win federal work. Use the list below as a starting point.
These listings are offered only as a convenience. Our firm is not affiliated with the organizations named, and their inclusion is not an endorsement.
Bachus, Brom & Taylor, LLC guides Alabama contractors through federal proposals, compliance, and disputes, from registration to appeal. Partner Steven M. Brom earned his law degree from the University of Colorado and is licensed in both Alabama and Georgia. He works alongside partner Bryan M. Taylor to represent businesses that depend on federal awards.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Bryan Taylor is as fine of a lawyer the state has to offer. Bryan represented my family in a matter that was basically hopeless regarding the chance to prevail in a legal matter. Bryan defied the odds and prevailed! If you need sound, moral legal representation, Bryan Taylor and this law firm is who you need representing you and yours.” – Robert Griffin
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Federal procurement rewards preparation and penalizes delay. If a proposal, an award decision, or a payment dispute has you debating your next step, our Alabama federal contracting attorneys can lay out where you stand and what your choices are, with the fee arrangement settled before any work starts. Filing dates in this area arrive fast, so we try to turn around new inquiries without delay. Contact us to talk through your matter with someone who understands how the system works.
