Commercial Item Contracts and Constructive Changes: When Your Shield Becomes Their Sword

Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel – Commercial vendors who might otherwise be unwilling to take on the regulatory burdens of federal procurement have nevertheless been attracted to Federal contracting by the protections offered by Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 12, relating to Acquisition of Commercial Items.  But, what if the Commercial Item procurement system’s protections have a built-in ambiguity that can be sprung like a trap door?