AbilityOne wins a stay in VA case

      The controversy over who gets top priority in Veterans Affairs Department contracting--veterans or disabled people--is not settled yet.

      Previously, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in May decided that veterans have top priority. On Sept. 15, it suspended its own decision until the matter can be judged by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

      The intervenor in the case, Industries for the Blind Inc., which is a maker of optical products and an AbilityOne contractor employing blind and disabled people, appealed the federal claims court’s decision to the higher court.

      IFB told the federal claims court it would suffer irreparable harm if the court’s May decision were allowed to go into effect immediately. The court agreed to the temporary suspension, in part because it said the immediate harm to IFB outweighed the potential future harm to veterans.

      The federal claims court also said it was unclear which law takes precedence: the 2006 “Veterans First” law or the 1971 law giving priority to firms employing the disabled.

      Analysts say the case may invite reconsideration of some of the issues that were brought to the Supreme Court last year in the Kingdomware case.

More information: Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP blog entry: http://goo.gl/8gnDPr
Koprince Law blog entry: http://goo.gl/kd4kPN

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