The Rise of OTAs in Defense Contracting: Opportunities, Risks, and What Contractors Need to Know
Podcast - Navigating the Updated SF-328 Form
Podcast - A Comparative Guide to Obtaining an FCL: DCSA vs. the Intelligence Community
Diversifying Your Contract Pipeline by Maximizing Opportunities through the DOD’s Mentor Protégé Program
A Comprehensive Overview of FOCI Mitigation
Podcast - Defense Dynamics: Navigating the Post-Election Landscape for the National Security Sector, Part 2
Mitigating FOCI Under Section 847
Episode 345 -- Raytheon Pays $950 Million to Resolve Fraud, FCPA, ITAR and False Claims Act Violations
Everyone Come to Play: Exploring FOCI Mitigation Instruments
Defense Dynamics: Navigating the Post-Election Landscape for the National Security Sector
Podcast - Navigating M&A Due Diligence: Safeguarding Security Clearances
Podcast - Change Condition Packages: Tips for Cleared Contractors
Podcast - Corporate Documents in the Context of Clearances
Navigating Personnel Security Clearances (PCLs)
Cybersecurity Insights: Updates on CMMC Implementation and CUI Identification
What Is an FCL and How Do I Obtain One?
Protecting Our Nation’s Data: Cybersecurity Compliance for Government Contractors
Intellectual Property In Department of Defense Contracting
The When, Where, Why and How of CMMC with Fernando Machado
Closing an aerospace or defense M&A deal is only the beginning. Successful integration requires careful planning to ensure compliance, operational continuity, and the retention of key personnel....more
Buried toward the bottom of President Trump’s Executive Order, titled “Unleashing American Drone Dominance” (the “Order”), is a mandate to identify military programs made more “efficient or lethal if replaced” by unmanned...more
In DirectViz Solutions, LLC, B-423366, et al. (June 11, 2025), DirectViz Solutions protested the Army’s issuance of a task order to Peraton for cybersecurity information technology support services for the Army’s Global...more
Cyber-attacks against America’s defense industrial base are becoming more sophisticated and more frequent. To reduce the risk of sensitive national security information landing in the hands of bad actors, the Department of...more
In Marathon Targets, Inc. v. United States, U.S. Court of Federal Claims, No. 25-121 (March 13, 2025, reissued March 24, 2025), Marathon Targets sought to block a U.S. Marine Corps contract awarded to MVP Robotics for...more
The Department of Defense (the “DoD”) recently released a new comprehensive guidebook to help navigate intellectual property laws and regulations. The guidebook states: In today’s global military competition, DoD needs to...more
As the Department of Defense (DoD) scales artificial intelligence across its operations, government contractors must ensure their AI solutions align with federal mandates and ethical standards. This guide provides links to...more
SWIFT to Launch May 1: DOD Fast Tracks Software Deployment Opening New Doors for Defense Contractors - In a decisive move to stay ahead in an era of rapidly evolving digital threats, the Department of Defense (DOD) is...more
In a decisive move to stay ahead in an era of rapidly evolving digital threats, the Department of Defense (DOD) is accelerating its push for software modernization. The upcoming launch of the Software Fast Track (SWIFT)...more
In the current economic climate, the obvious focus of many companies is on the administration’s imposition of tariffs. However, government contractors, especially those contracting with the U.S. Department of Defense (“DoD”),...more
At the end of 2024, Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) published a plan (“Restoring Freedom’s Forge: American Innovation Unleashed”) and introduced a bill (the Fostering Reform and Government Efficiency in Defense Act or FoRGED...more
U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) contractors with foreign ownership, control, or influence (FOCI) soon will face new requirements. Though cleared DOD contractors have long been bound by FOCI obligations, the new rule will...more
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on federal procurement titled "Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement" on April 15, 2025 (the April 15 EO), directing that the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) be...more
On April 9, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order (the Order) to streamline the defense acquisition process and workforce, and potentially eliminate defense programs that are over budget or behind schedule....more
Reform the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to remove undue barriers, such as unnecessary regulations, while simultaneously allowing for the expansion of the national and defense industrial bases. Accordingly, the FAR...more
President Donald Trump on April 9, 2025, signed three executive orders (EOs) focused on accelerating defense procurement, improving foreign defense sales between the U.S. and its allies and revitalizing American maritime...more
On the heels of the Trump administration’s new guidance on federal agency AI use and procurement, the administration has taken another step aimed at accelerating how the government works with the private sector—this time...more
The Air Force is showing increased interest in using its Contractor Responsibility Watch List (CRWL). This is for companies that, in the agency’s view, should be blocked from further space projects. ...more
The fourth quarter of 2024 presented government contractors with significant changes, including annual spending bills, new rulemakings, agency announcements and a new federal administration following the election. We review...more
To kick off the New Year (and as is now tradition, since we put out a similar Recap & Forecast last year), Sheppard Mullin’s Governmental Practice Cybersecurity & Data Protection Team has prepared a cybersecurity-focused 2024...more
In the latest episode of "Are We All Clear?", host Molly O'Casey and national security attorney Antonia Tzinova discuss Section 847 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), aimed at mitigating Foreign Ownership,...more
WHAT: The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) issued a proposed rule to implement Section 1655(a) and (c) of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232). The proposed rule would...more
Last night, the House of Representatives passed the BIOSECURE Act (BIOSECURE or the Act) by a bipartisan vote of 306 to 81. The BIOSECURE Act prohibits federal agencies from procuring or obtaining any biotechnology...more
On August 15, 2024, the Department of Defense (DoD) published a proposed rule to amend the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to incorporate contractual requirements related to the Cybersecurity...more
Defense contractors and subcontractors that handle Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) and do not have robust information-security system controls in place better get their house in order now if they want to do business...more