William W. Thompson

Mr. Thompson is one of the speakers for Workshop W2, “What Every Contractor Must Know about the False Claims Act,” on Wednesday morning. He has specialized in government contract law and construction litigation for more than 30 years.

He has represented a broad range of government contractors, from major defense contractors, to information technology and systems integration contractors, to construction contractors. His clients have ranged from multibillion-dollar contractors to start-up companies. This representation has included business-related advice on bidding strategies, federal cost principles and cost accounting requirements, and compliance with federal and state fraud, waste, and abuse laws and regulations. He also has extensive experience with competitions under OMB Circular A-76.

Mr. Thompson has extensive experience in preparing, negotiating, mediating, and, if necessary, litigating contract disputes in arbitrations, state and federal courts, and administrative boards, including the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, GAO, Boards of Contract Appeals of the various agencies, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He has experience with the prosecution and defense of claims arising from contracts with the entire range of federal agencies, as well as with state and local governmental agencies.

Among the more significant cases that Mr. Thompson has handled are: a $100+ million claim by a major defense contractor that was settled for $80 million after a 2-week mediation—the largest successful mediation of a Department of Defense dispute at the time; the contest of a $2 billion award of an OMB Circular A-76 competition by the Federal Aviation Administration—the largest A-76 contest to date; the successful protest of a $10 billion procurement; summary judgment in favor of a contractor in a multimillion-dollar case decided by the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals; summary judgment in favor of two defendants in the same case brought in federal district court under the False Claims Act; and favorable settlement of a $100 million breach of contract action on a hydroelectric project. Since 2005, Mr. Thompson has handled bid protests totaling $13.5 billion.

As government oversight of government contractors has intensified in the search for fraud, waste, and abuse, Mr. Thompson's compliance practice has grown. This has included prophylactic advice on internal corporate controls, assistance in constructing and implementing compliance programs, internal investigations of potential mischarging, and representation of clients in investigations, audits, and litigations. Besides investigating and advising clients on compliance with federal statutes such as the False Claims Act and Truth in Negotiations Act, he has investigated potential violations of the Sarbanes-Oxley statute.

Mr. Thompson received a bachelor of arts degree from Yale University in 1972 and a juris doctor degree, with honors, from George Washington University in 1975. He is a member of the bars of Virginia and the District of Columbia and is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Federal Claims, U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the Fourth Circuit and the Second Circuit, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, and U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.