In three related bid protest decisions made public last week, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) reaffirmed the principle that agencies must meaningfully consider price when making best value tradeoff decisions. GAO sustained the protests, stressing that merely paying lip service to price while selecting a more expensive, higher-rated offeror is
Continue Reading “Hey Big Spender . . .”: GAO Reiterates That Agencies Must Meaningfully Consider Price In Best Value Tradeoffs
Hunter Bennett
Hunter Bennett regularly represents government contractors in bid protests before the Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. He also counsels clients in a wide range of formation and disputes issues. Prior to entering private practice, he served as a Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, where he was a member of the Department’s Bid Protest Team and frequently defended the United States against bid protests filed in the Court of Federal Claims.
During his tenure at the Department of Justice, Hunter served as lead counsel for the United States in dozens of cases involving complex commercial disputes. He also oversaw the litigation of all habeas corpus cases filed by Guantanamo Bay detainees that were pending before the Honorable Gladys Kessler in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and personally tried five detainee habeas cases. Additionally, Hunter briefed and/or argued more than 20 cases in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Hunter began his career as a prosecutor in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, where he served as lead counsel in over 200 habeas corpus cases filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and successfully briefed and/or argued multiple cases in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
In his spare time, Hunter plays bass guitar in the band Dot Dash, whose song “Shopworn Excuse” was dubbed “a jangly piece of heaven” by USA Today.