Hunt Ortmann Nieves Darling Mah Klein & Lozano, Inc. is proud to share that the Firm recently achieved another court victory for a long standing client.
The case involved a union bid protest against Hunt Ortmann’s client, and the Firm’s extensive expertise in bid protests was put to the test. The successful outcome was led by the coordination and strategy of attorney, Dustin Lozano, and in particular, the bid protest expertise of attorney, Emily Kromke, who outworked and outmaneuvered an overzealous union.
After winning the bid protest, which concluded with an evidentiary hearing, the union filed its writ seeking to overturn the hearing officer’s decision. More significantly, the union sought the cancellation of the contract that Hunt Ortmann’s client had with the public entity on the basis that the contract was improperly awarded to the client. Side Note: If a contract with a public agency is deemed illegal, it is void, and any project funds need to be disgorged (paid back). In this case, that amount would have been millions of dollars of project funds. This would have been highly detrimental to Hunt Ortmann’s client.
The key turning point in the case was when the union lost a motion to augment the administrative record, which sought to add POST-hearing evidence into the record. Attorney, Peter Schnaitman, wrote an excellent opposition which dismantled the union’s motion, and the court ruled in our client’s favor. Several weeks later, the union dismissed its writ.
Congratulations to our client and to Hunt Ortmann on this tremendous victory!
Hunt Ortmann has extensive experience guiding both agencies and contractors through responsibility hearings and bid protests that involve a variety of issues, including, specific project qualifications, financial responsibility and bonding, and past performance. The attorneys of Hunt Ortmann understand the importance of the bidding process, and how to best protect the parties contracting for public works projects.
If you need help navigating through the many legal issues that come along with bid protests and bid mistakes, contact the skilled and experienced construction attorneys of Hunt Ortmann.
