Protests in Federal Contracting: What Contractors Need to Know
March 18, 2026 @ 1:00 PM Eastern Time
Special Guest: Nicole Pottroff from Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC
On the next episode of GovCon Roundup Live, Carroll Bernard and Steven Koprince will tackle one of the most misunderstood parts of government contracting: bid protests.
For many contractors, protests sound complicated or overly legal. But in reality, they are an important part of the federal procurement system’s commitment to fairness, transparency, and competition.
In federal contracting, there is no central “procurement police” monitoring every acquisition. Contracting officers manage many procurements at once, and agencies often rely on contractors themselves to raise concerns when something appears inconsistent with procurement law or competition rules.
In that sense, contractors help ensure the playing field stays level. Bid protests are one of the primary mechanisms that allow companies to challenge situations where the rules may not have been followed.
In this 90-minute GovCon Roundup Live discussion, we will quickly walk through the key aspects of protests, then open the floor for a live Q&A with the audience.
What We Will Cover:
- What is a bid protest, and why should contractors understand it
We will start with a quick overview of how protests work and why they exist as a safeguard to ensure fairness and accountability in federal procurement. - Pre-award protests
When contractors challenge the terms of a solicitation before award. This can include situations where requirements are unclear, overly restrictive, or appear structured in a way that limits fair competition. - Post award protests
What happens when a contractor believes the government made an error in evaluating proposals or selecting the awardee? We will discuss common grounds for protest and what contractors typically learn during debriefings. - Protest Forums
Bid protests often can be filed in one of three forums: with the procuring agency, with the Government Accountability Office, and with the Court of Federal Claims. We will briefly discuss the key characteristics and differences between these forums. - Defending against a protest
Winning the contract does not always end the process. We will explain what happens when another company files a protest and how awardees participate in defending the award decision. - Critical Timelines
What are the critical timelines contractors should be aware of when filing protests? - When to hire an attorney
We will discuss why a GovCon attorney over a DIY protest is a good decision, how to find a GovCon attorney specializing in federal procurement regulations, and how soon you should engage them. - AI and protests
With the rise of AI tools, contractors and attorneys are increasingly using technology to analyze solicitations and draft protest arguments. We will discuss both the opportunities and the risks, including mistakes that can occur when AI is used improperly. - Key Protest Statistics
How common are bid protests? How often do protests succeed? We will cover some key bid protest statistics–some of which will surprise those who believe that bid protests are commonplace or frequently frivolous.
After a quick overview of these topics, we will shift to live audience Q&A, where contractors can ask anything they want to know about protests and how they work in the real world.
“Ignorance isn’t bliss—it’s expensive.”
GovCon Roundup Live is your survival guide to the wild world of federal contracting, where the acronyms are endless, the rules are ever-changing, and staying competitive means being sharp and adaptable. We break down policy changes, legislative updates, and industry shifts that signal strategic opportunities to pivot, reposition, and stay one step ahead of the chaos.
Whether you’re a small business, a consultant, or someone who accidentally became a government contractor and decided to roll with it, this show helps you stay informed, make smarter decisions, and maybe even enjoy the ride.
Speakers
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Carroll BernardCARROLL BERNARD, Co-Founder & Managing Member, Waypoint America LLC dba GovologyCarroll Bernard is the Co-Founder and Managing Member of Waypoint America LLC dba Govology. He brings deep government contracting expertise from serving as a government buyer, small business contractor, and procurement advisor. His career includes acquisition roles in the U.S. Navy Supply Corps, the City of Vancouver (WA), and the Department of Veterans Affairs as a warranted Contracting Officer. He later served at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) as a Business Development Specialist supporting 8(a) firms, and also as the SBA Portland District’s Veteran Business Development Officer and Primary HUBZone Liaison. After federal service, Carroll helped small businesses compete for government contracts as a Procurement Counselor with the Department of Defense APEX Accelerator program (formerly PTAP). In 2015, he and his team launched Govology’s online training platform, which has trained over 20,000 business professionals through partnerships with nonprofits, government agencies, universities, and corporations.
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Steven KoprinceFaculty Instructor and Legal Analyst, GovologySteven J. Koprince is a Faculty Instructor and Legal Analyst at Govology. Before joining Govology, Steven founded and served as the Managing Partner of Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC, a law firm devoted exclusively to providing comprehensive legal services to federal government contractors.
Steven is the author of The Small-Business Guide to Government Contracts (AMACOM Books, 2012) and co-author of three GovCon Handbooks providing in-depth information on discrete government contracting topics. Steven also founded the blog SmallGovCon (smallgovcon.com), where he has written more than 1,100 posts on government contracting legal issues. Steven has been quoted in several national news outlets and has appeared on numerous radio programs and podcasts. A frequent featured speaker at the national conferences of the Association of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, Steven was honored as a “Friend of APTAC” at the Spring 2016 APTAC National Conference.
In addition to his work for Govology, Steven volunteers for and serves as a Director of a nonprofit organization providing wrap-around services to disadvantaged families. He is also a co-founder and Director of a nonprofit organization promoting the great sport of pickleball in Lawrence and the surrounding area.
Steven is a graduate of Duke University and the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary. Steven lives in Lawrence, Kansas, with his wife, two children, and two cuddly cats.
Steven welcomes APEX Accelerator counselors to contact him by email at skoprince@govology.com and connect with him on LinkedIn.
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Nicole PottroffEquity partner, Koprince McCall Pottroff LLCNicole D. Pottroff is an equity partner with Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC. Nicole’s practice focuses exclusively on federal government contract law. She helps clients understand and comply with the complex regulatory provisions unique to federal contracting, including the FAR, DFARS, and SBA small business, 8(a) Program, WOSB/EDWOSB, SDVOSB/VOSB, and HUBZone regulations, among others.Nicole also assists clients by drafting, reviewing, and negotiating joint venture agreements, mentor-protégé agreements, teaming agreements, subcontracts, social disadvantage narratives, and other critical documents.
On the litigation side, Nicole has also played a key role in numerous GAO bid protests, Court of Federal Claims protests, SBA size and status protests, appeals before the SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, matters before the Boards of Contract Appeals, and even a protest appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Nicole graduated from the University of Kansas and the Washburn University School of Law. A lover of animals and all-things outdoors, Nicole lives in Lawrence, Kansas, with her husband and sons. Nicole covers government contracting legal topics regularly on SmallGovCon.com. You can contact Nicole by phone at (785) 200-8919 or by email at npottroff@koprince.com.
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