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John A. Howell

Partner

John A. Howell, a partner in our Washington, D.C. office, is the leader of the Government Contracts & Grants Group. His practice covers the entire spectrum of government contracts law, including contract formation and administration, claims and protest activity, litigation, procurement fraud investigations, and international procurement, with a special emphasis on commercial products and services contracting (including General Services Administration/Department of Veterans Affairs multiple-award schedule contracting), biodefense and healthcare contracting, patent and data rights, proposal preparation, technology transfer, the procurement of telecommunications and information technology, homeland security, and Iraqi reconstruction contracting. He also advises clients with respect to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, and export and munitions controls under the various U.S. export-controls regimes.

Mr. Howell has assisted clients in the preparation of proposals that have resulted in multibillion-dollar contract awards. In contested matters, he regularly represents clients before the Government Accountability Office, agency boards of contract appeals, the United States Court of Federal Claims, the federal district courts, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. In addition to his federal procurement practice, Mr. Howell also represents clients in matters relating to grants, cooperative agreements, and state and local public contracts.

Before joining Sullivan & Worcester, Mr. Howell was a partner at McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP. As a faculty member of The George Washington University Law School Government Contracts Program, Mr. Howell has developed two highly successful government contracts courses relating to schedule contracting and the acquisition of commercial items. Since 1995, he has been AV® rated by the Martindale-Hubbell® Law Directory.

Mr. Howell is a regular contributor to the USA Inbound Acquisitions & Investments Blog.

Representative Client Work

  • Represents numerous General Services Administration/Department of Veterans Affairs multiple-award schedule contractors in compliance and enforcement matters
  • Counsels numerous clients on country-of-origin issues
  • Counsels major bus manufacturer on Federal Transit Administration Buy America regulations, state and local procurement issues, and grantee requirements
  • Conducted large-scale, contract-compliance review for major healthcare client
  • Represented information-technology client in subcontractor-prime contractor dispute in federal district court, obtaining dismissal of complaint
  • Represented intervenor in postaward bid protest at the United States Court of Federal Claims (protest denied)
  • Represented a major financial institution in two complex negotiated acquisitions in connection with its successful efforts to obtain two multibillion-dollar General Services Administration contracts to provide the Federal Government with a travel and transportation payment and expense control system utilizing charge instruments
  • Represented a global fast-food enterprise in its successful efforts to obtain a multibillion-dollar fast-food license agreement with the Navy Exchange Service Command

Bar & Court Admissions

  • Virginia, 1975
  • District of Columbia, 1977
  • U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims
  • Supreme Court of the United States

Publications

  • Collateral Damage: The Impact on Contractors of GAO's DCAA Reports, Federal Contracts Report (February 2010)
  • Increased Enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Aspatore (2009)
  • "A Clause in Search of Meaning: A Critical Dissection of the Price Reductions Clause (Plus Suggestions for Reform)," 37 Pub. Cont. L.J. 337, (2008)
  • "Government Schedule Contracting," Association of Corporate Counsel InfoPAK, co-author, (September 2006)
  • "The Trade Agreements Act of 1979 Versus The Buy American Act: The Irresistible Force Meets the Immovable Object," 35 Pub. Cont. L.J. 495, (2006)
  • "Schedule Contracting: Selling Commercial Products and Services to the Government," The George Washington University, (2006)
  • "Contracting for Commercial Products and Services," The George Washington University, (2000)
  • "The Role of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy in the Management of the Boards of Contract Appeals: From Great Expectations to Paradise Lost?" 28 Pub. Cont. L.J. 559, (1999)
  • "Governmentwide Agency Contracts: Vehicle Overcrowding on the Procurement Highway," 27 Pub. Cont. L.J. 395, (1998)
  • Note, "X Corp. v. Doe and the New Material Clause: The New Frontier of Liability for Federal Supply Contractors," 24 Pub. Cont. L.J. 343, (1995)
  • "Marketing to Federal Agencies and Ordering Issues Under Multiple-Award Schedule Contracts," in The GSA Multiple Award Schedule Program: Current Issues and Future Trends, tab F, American Bar Association, (1994)

Client Advisories

Speaking Engagements

  • "How to Improve the Multiple Award Schedule Program," Federal News Radio (WFED) (July 27, 2010)
  • "Complying with Trade Agreements and Certifying Country of Origin," American Conference Institute's 3rd Advance Forum on "Government Contracting Ethics and Compliance" (October 20-21, 2010)
  • "Advanced Forum on Government Contract Cost & Pricing," American Conference Institute (April 2010)
  • "FAR Mandatory Disclosure Rules: Implementing the Programs Necessary to Ensure Compliance," American Conference Institute’s National Advanced Forum on "Government Contracting Compliance & Ethics" (September 2009)
  • "An In Depth Look at Bid Protests" and "Protest Disputes & Compliance," Federal News Radio 1500 AM's "Off the Shelf" (July 2009)
  • "Schedule Compliance,” Center for Facilities Maintenance and Hardware (April 2009)
  • "Preventing and Managing Organizational Conflicts of Interest: Legal and Practical Guidance for Effective Mitigation," American Conference Institute (September 2008)

Professional & Civic Activities

  • The District of Columbia Bar (Member, Government Contracts and Litigation Section)
  • American Bar Association (Member, Sections of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice, Business Law, and Public Contract Law (Vice-Chair, Commercial Products and Services Committee); Member, Forum on the Construction Industry)
  • Public Contract Law Journal, Associate Editor
  • Coalition for Government Procurement (Member, Board of Advisors)
  • Federal Bar Association (Member, Government Contracts Section)
  • Federal Circuit Bar Association
  • Boards of Contract Appeals Bar Association (Member, Board of Governors)
  • Judge Advocates Association
  • Government Contractors Association, Inc. (Member, Board of Advisors)

Education

  • LL.M., The National Law Center of The George Washington University, 1979
  • J.D., Duke University School of Law, Duke Law Journal, 1975
  • A.B., Duke University, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, 1972
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