Bids and Awards in Federal Contracting: Responsiveness in Sealed Bidding

Summary

This practice note discusses responsiveness and its special place within the sealed bidding process. Focus areas will include the key definition of sealed bidding, what constitutes "responsiveness" within bidding, informalities, compliance requirements, special qualifications, and what the Contracting Officer, or CO/KO, has in terms of discretion related to responsiveness. By understanding all of these, contractors and counsel will gain a better sense of the importance of responsiveness in the sealed bidding process and how to best comply with what the contracting agency is looking for to improve bid selection success.