Lawyers

Experience

Heather A. James is Counsel at Whiteford, Taylor & Preston and a member of the firm's Government Contracts Practice Group.  In her practice, Ms. James has represented clients in a wide range of procurement issues in numerous forums.
 
Ms. James also provides a full range of government contracts advice and representation to companies in a variety of industries.  She counsels clients on proposal submissions and certifications, 8(a) and other economic disadvantaged business issues, contract formation, administration and termination issues, data rights and intellectual property matters, organizational conflicts of interest, and GSA schedule issues.  Prior to entering private practice, Ms. James was a Senior Compliance Officer with the Department of Labor Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.

• Multimillion dollar Iraq reconstruction and other certified claims in arbitration proceedings and before the various Boards of Contract Appeals and the Court of Federal Claims
• Bid protests and intervenor actions before the Government Accountability Office and Court of Federal Claims
• Size protests and appeals before the Small Business Administration
• Labor standard compliance matters before the Department of Labor
• Procurement fraud, False Claims Act and defective pricing issues before the Department of Defense and the Department of Justice
• Personnel and facility security clearance matters
• Suspension and debarment proceedings
• DCAA audits and claims negotiation and resolution
• Government investigations and qui tam actions
• Prime-subcontractor and commercial disputes

General Information

• Member: American Bar Association Public Contract Law
• Author: "Contractor Liability Under The Civil False Claims Act: Contracting with the U.S. government on federal construction projects has always involved some level of risk." Construction Update, Spring 2008
• Author: "Amendments to the Jobs for Veterans Act of 2002," Employment Relations Update, Spring 2008
• Author: "Federal Contractors To Face Much Closer Scrutiny," Atlantic Coast In-House, January 2007
• Co-Author: "Protecting Intellectual Property Rights in Government Contracting," Atlantic Coast In-House, October 2006
• Lecturer: Government Contracts 101, TowsonGlobal International Incubator, June 2008
• Lecturer: Government Contractor Employment Issues: What You Need to Know to Protect Your Company From the OFCCP, October 2007
• Lecturer: How to Survive and Thrive in the New Homeland Security Procurement Environment, April 2004

Education

• George Mason University (B.A. 1995)
• George Mason University School of Law (J.D. 1999)