Mr Michael Vernick > Akin > Washington DC, United States > Lawyer Profile
Akin Offices
Robert S. Strauss Tower
2001 K Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006-1037
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
United States
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Mr Michael Vernick
Work Department
Government Contracts
Position
Partner
To learn more about Michael, please visit his profile here: https://www.akingump.com/en/lawyers-advisors/michael-j-vernick
Career
Mike is the leader of the government contracts group at Akin, specializing in the higher education and health care sectors, particularly life sciences. His expertise in False Claims Act (FCA) cases encompasses various aspects of government contracting, including compliance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), General Services Administration (GSA) contracts, defective products, and bid rigging. Mike has extensive experience working with universities and academic medical centers, focusing on scientific compliance related to financial conflicts of interest, research misconduct, and human subject research.
He has successfully represented prestigious institutions in cases involving allegations of foreign influence on U.S. government-funded research, including the resolution of the first reported FCA case concerning undisclosed researcher ties to a foreign government. Mike assists research institutions with Uniform Guidance enforcement, compliance matters, and sponsor regulations, providing guidance on grants and cooperative agreements’ financial, administrative, and scientific management. He also advises leading research institutions on international sponsored projects, capacity building, and training initiatives.
Mike has handled bid protests before the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, as well as suspension and debarment proceedings across multiple U.S. government agencies. Additionally, he has worked on contract claims and disputes and provided counsel on government cost accounting matters, including Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) audits, disputes, and claims. Before joining Akin, Mike led the government contracts practice and education industry sector team at another international law firm.
Memberships
Member, Government Contracts and Litigation Sections, Bar Association of the District of Columbia.
Member, National Association of College and University Attorneys.
Education
J.D., George Mason University School of Law, with high honors, 1997
B.A., Tufts University, cum laude, 1991
Lawyer Rankings
United States > Government > Government contracts
Frequently representing small and large contractors in the tech, aerospace and national security spaces, Akin covers procurement matters at local, state, federal and international levels. Recently, the group has handled a varied workload, spanning security clearance issues, False Claims Act investigation and litigation, M&A and intellectual property-related government contract matters and bid protests. Leading the team is Michael Vernick, who has significant experience in researching funding, investigations and compliance issues, with a focus on the education and life sciences sectors. Scott Heimberg is specialized in transactions involving security clearance and foreign ownership, control and influence issues. Infrastructure and transportation are the areas of expertise of Susan Lent, while Angela Styles is prominent in grants, cost and pricing issues and commercial item contracting.
United States > Industry focus > Education
(Leading lawyers)Led by Michael Vernick, based in Washington DC, the education practice at Akin regularly handles highly sensitive and complex matters involving policy issues, high-stakes internal investigations and litigation, as well as concerns related to sponsored research, education policy, Title IX obligations, and Title IV issues. The group is also active in cyber security and data issues, while Vernick has a strong reputation for handling clinical trials and foreign influence matters. Litigation specialist Anthony Pierce focuses his practice on large class actions, high-level employment law matters and investigations in the athletics sector. In New York, Estela Diaz handles investigations in relation to misconduct and is a credited Title IX investigator. Working closely with Vernick, DC-based counsel Marta Thompson has extensive experience representing institutes of higher education and academic medical centers in the regulatory and litigation space, including representing research institutions in False Claims Act investigations.
Lawyer Rankings
- Leading lawyers United States > Industry focus > Education
- Education United States > Industry focus
- Government contracts United States > Government
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- International Trade > Customs, export controls and economic sanctions
- Government > Government relations
- Finance > Structured finance: securitization
- Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate
- International Trade > Trade remedies and trade policy
Firm Rankings
- Investment fund formation and management > Alternative/hedge funds
- Media, technology and telecoms > Cyber law (including data privacy and data protection)
- Industry focus > Education
- Energy > Energy transactions: oil and gas
- Media, technology and telecoms > Media and entertainment: transactional
- Industry focus > Native American law
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Shareholder activism
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Corporate governance
- Government > Government contracts
- Labor and employment > Labor and employment disputes (including collective actions)
- Investment fund formation and management > Private equity funds (including venture capital)
- Energy > Renewable/alternative power
- Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
- Labor and employment > Workplace and employment counseling
- Finance > Capital markets: debt offerings
- Finance > Capital markets: high-yield debt offerings
- International Trade > CFIUS
- Energy > Energy transactions: electric power
- Environment > Environment: transactional
- Dispute resolution > General commercial disputes
- Antitrust > Merger control
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (International Trade Commission)
- Industry focus > Sport
- Media, technology and telecoms > Telecoms and broadcast: regulatory
- Antitrust > Civil litigation/class actions: defense
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)
- Real estate > Real estate
- Tax > US taxes: non-contentious
- M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: large deals ($1bn+)
- Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
- Finance > Commercial lending
- Dispute resolution > Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense
- Finance > Structured finance: securitization