Clarifying Minor Errors: The Court Makes An Agency Seek A Clarification

Offerors whose proposals are disqualified for immaterial typographical and data input errors will want to read an interesting new protest decision from the Court of Federal Claims. In Aspire Therapy Services & Consultants, Inc. v. United States, the Court sustained a protest because the procuring agency did not seek clarification before rejecting a proposal for what the Court found to be an "obvious and typographical" error in the protester's proposal. While recognizing agencies ordinarily are not requiredto seek clarifications, the Court found the agency abused its discretion by not requesting a clarification under these facts. Although the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has never adopted such a rule and is unlikely to do so, and Aspire will not bind other judges of the Court of Federal Claims, this case may offer hope to some offerors with otherwise hopeless cases.