"In the complex world of government contracting and federal regulation, you really need to get it right. That's where I come in. Let me help you."

John Howell is an unabashed, unapologetic perfectionist who is, frankly, arrogant about his work product. He is also a superb researcher and writer. If you have a complex government contracting or other federal regulatory matter, call John. In addition to being responsive, creative, and willing to go to war for his clients, John will be honest with you – at times, he has told prospective or actual clients that they need a magician, not a lawyer.

John’s practice focuses on government contracts, grants, and investigations from the firm’s Washington, D.C., office. For over thirty years, he has been fully engaged in all aspects of the following:

government contracts law,
national security and defense procurement law,
construction law,
export controls and sanctions, and
commercial contracting.

At the federal level, he has handled procurement matters involving virtually every federal department and agency. In addition to his federal procurement practice, he also represents clients in matters relating to grants, cooperative agreements, and state and local public contracts.

John’s practice covers the entire spectrum of government contracts law, including:

contract formation and administration,
claims and protest activity,
litigation,
procurement fraud investigations, and
international procurement.

He has extensive nationally-recognized experience in commercial products and services contracting, including General Services Administration/Department of Veterans Affairs multiple-award schedule contracting. His practice also features a special emphasis on matters including:

biodefense and healthcare contracting,
patent and data rights,
proposal preparation,
technology transfer,
procurement of telecommunications and information technology,
contractor team arrangements,
country-of-origin determinations,
homeland security,
contingency contracting,
security clearances,
the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, and
the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977.

On several occasions, he has assisted clients in the preparation of proposals that have resulted in multibillion-dollar contract awards. In contested matters, he regularly represents clients before the Government Accountability Office, agency boards of contract appeals, the United States Court of Federal Claims, the federal district courts, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

And one more thing: John has an LL.M. degree in administrative law and can assist clients in virtually any area of federal administrative law, be it energy, international trade (antidumping and countervailing-duty investigations, etc.), nuclear regulatory, telecommunications, or otherwise.