Ryan Roberts

Mr. Ryan E. Roberts is an associate in the Government Contracts, Investigations & International Trade Practice Group in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He is also a member of the firm’s Aerospace and Defense and Retail Industry Teams. Mr. Roberts has extensive experience representing government contractors ranging from small businesses to the largest defense contractors in a broad range of matters. His areas of expertise include:

• Civil False Claims Act litigation defense
• Internal investigations
• Civil and criminal subpoena responses to both Federal and state enforcement agencies
• Mandatory disclosures to the Department of Defense and General Services Administration (GSA) Offices of Inspector General
• Compliance programs, including drafting policies and implementing comprehensive compliance programs
• Bid protests before the Government Accountability Office
• Small business issues under the Small Business Administration regulations
• Trade Agreements Act compliance
• Revolving door and other post-government employment restrictions

As part of his internal investigation practice, Mr. Roberts serves as a member of the team appointed in 2013 by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana as the federal monitor over the New Orleans Police Department responsible for reviewing, assessing, and reporting publicly on the Department’s compliance with a far-reaching Consent Decree.

Mr. Roberts is an active member of the Public Law Section of the American Bar Association, and has served as the Editor of the BCA Case Digests for the Board of Contract Appeals Bar Journal. Mr. Roberts graduated from The George Washington University Law School where he was the Roger Boyd Scholar and Editor-in-Chief of the Public Contract Law Journal.

Experience:

Mr. Roberts has counseled numerous clients, ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, regarding compliance with the statutes and regulations applicable to government contractors. Representative counseling matters include:

• Developed and implemented government contracts compliance programs for a commercial electronics manufacturer, an information technology services provider, and a software manufacturer
• Drafted government contracts policies and procedures for a global payments & technology company, a cloud computing company, and a customer relationship software tracking manufacturer
• Conducted government contracts compliance reviews for a rocket and missile propulsion manufacturer, several furniture manufacturers, and a document technology solutions manufacturer
• Advised large technology manufacturer through updating pricing practices disclosure under its GSA Schedule contract, including revising and negotiating an updated Commercial Sales Practices Format disclosure

Mr. Roberts has conducted numerous complex investigations, including investigations of allegations contained within and coordinated responses to Civil Investigative Demands, subpoenas from Federal and state enforcement agencies, and internal hotline complaints. Additionally, he has assisted with both mandatory and voluntary disclosures at the Federal and state levels. Representative examples include:

• Investigated allegations and coordinated responses under Civil Investigative Demands relating to contracts with the Departments of Interior and Health and Human Services
• Investigated and coordinated subpoena response to allegations of labor mischarging under a state contract in the U.S. Virgin Islands
• Investigated hotline complaint of alleged kickbacks being provided by a subcontractor
• Investigated hotline complaints of improper testing of Government-owned equipment
• Investigated allegations of violations of the Procurement Integrity Act

Mr. Roberts has represented government contractors in a broad range of complex, high-stakes litigation matters before the U.S. District Courts for the District of Columbia and the Eastern District of Virginia, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals, the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, the Court of Federal Claims, and the Government Accountability Office. Representative litigation matters include:

• Defended a global defense contractor against a qui tam lawsuit under the False Claims Act
• Defended a small information technology products reseller against a qui tam lawsuit under the False Claims Act
• Negotiated settlements of claims against the Department of Defense, Department of Interior, Department of Health and Human Services, the United States Postal Service, the Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation
• Protested or defended the award of over two dozen contracts at the Government Accountability Office

Education:

• J.D., The George Washington University Law School, 2010, Editor-in-Chief, Public Contract Law Journal, Roger Boyd Scholar
• B.A., University at Albany, State University of New York, 2006, summa cum laude

Admissions:

• Virginia
• District of Columbia