An Introduction to Federal Suspension & Debarment

The federal suspension and debarment blacklist is the single most powerful administrative tool in the Executive Branch arsenal to protect tax-supported activities against fraud, waste, abuse, non-compliance, poor performance and a wide variety of other policy concerns.  Business entities, exempt organizations, and individuals whose names are placed on the federal blacklist face serious, if not catastrophic, economic consequences.  In many cases, being blacklisted results in financial ruin for individuals and even collapse of a business – both in the federal contacts and assistance space and in the private sector.

Virtually every attorney, no matter what area of law you practice, should be aware of this blacklisting system.   Who is vulnerable?  What factors are considered by the listing officials?  Who may be sharing information about your client within the government?  What are your clients' rights and how to you protect your client from improper use of this tool?  Join attorney Robert F. Meunier in this revealing program of instruction to build attorney awareness about the federal suspension and debarment system. Don't miss MR. Meunier's insights as he shares an interesting history of creating the federal blacklist and the execution of it as only he, as one of the founders and most-experienced former federal officials in the arena, can provide.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify concerns, factors and some of the critical milestones that, over time, influenced the development of the federal blacklisting system, and how those factors are at play today
2. Appreciate how the courts have cautiously drawn lines between the rights of blacklisted entities vs. the prerogatives of the government
3. Find what the rules of practice and procedure require of the government and of the entity targeted for blacklisting
4. Apply the right rules in the proper context to effectively protect your clients' interests
5. Discuss measures are available to individual, corporate or outside counsel to meet the government's needs while at the same time providing damage control to the interests of your client