Ralph C. Thomas III

Attorney and Solicitor Ralph C. Thomas III is a Government Contracts Litigator who focuses his practice on legal issues affecting small businesses in the federal contracting arena. He represents all categories of small businesses before the U.S Court of Federal Claims, U.S. District Court and their respective appellate courts. He also represents small businesses before administrative tribunals such as the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals, the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Hearings and Appeals and the General Accountability Office (“GAO”).He assists small businesses who are targeted by Inspector General investigations and serves clients in commercial arbitration disputes before the American Arbitration Association (AAA). In addition, Ralph has counseled major corporations on the practical implementation of federal small business regulatory compliance issues.

Since leaving NASA Headquarters as its Associate Administrator for Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization and returning to the practice of law in 2005, Ralph has won a number of significant cases on behalf of small businesses.

In 2018 Ralph won a six-figure settlement for a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Business (SDVOSB) who had alleged that a large civilian federal agency had refused to renew its remaining contract options due to… Read More

Attorney and Solicitor Ralph C. Thomas III is a Government Contracts Litigator who focuses his practice on legal issues affecting small businesses in the federal contracting arena. He represents all categories of small businesses before the U.S Court of Federal Claims, U.S. District Court and their respective appellate courts. He also represents small businesses before administrative tribunals such as the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals, the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Hearings and Appeals and the General Accountability Office (“GAO”).He assists small businesses who are targeted by Inspector General investigations and serves clients in commercial arbitration disputes before the American Arbitration Association (AAA). In addition, Ralph has counseled major corporations on the practical implementation of federal small business regulatory compliance issues.

Since leaving NASA Headquarters as its Associate Administrator for Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization and returning to the practice of law in 2005, Ralph has won a number of significant cases on behalf of small businesses.

In 2018 Ralph won a six-figure settlement for a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Business (SDVOSB) who had alleged that a large civilian federal agency had refused to renew its remaining contract options due to bad faith.

In 2017, Ralph filed a GAO protest on behalf of Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) which challenged a government agency’s $28 million contract award to another company. Prior to a GAO ruling on the case, the government agency decided, as a result of the protest, to cancel its contract award to the other company and re-evaluate the proposals. After re-evaluation of the proposals, Ralph’s client was awarded the contract. In addition, Thomas successfully defended an 8(a) Joint Venture against a size protest before the SBA Area Office, the result of which preserved the $55 million contract that Ralph’s client had already been awarded.

In 2016, after a company was terminated from the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program, Ralph won a summary judgment against the SBA in Federal court, reversing the agency’s improper termination. The company was subsequently reinstated in the 8(a) Program. In addition, Ralph won a six-figure settlement from a federal agency in the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals for an SDVOSB that had not been paid for hundreds of thousands of dollars in invoices to which the company was entitled. In a novel government contract case Ralph filed a bid protest on behalf of a subcontractor in an independent claim against a federal agency under the Tucker Act. The case was settled for an amount that the subcontractor would have won had it prevailed in the protest. Finally, Ralph successfully defeated a Government’s Motion to Dismiss in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims on behalf of his SDVOSB client, who alleged that a Federal agency had wrongfully failed to exercise options on its contract.

In 2015, Ralph successfully defended an 8(a) contractor in a size protest before both the SBA Area Office and the SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, thus preserving a $26M contract for his client. He also successfully defended an 8(a) Joint Venture against both a bid protest before the GAO and a size protest before the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals, thus preserving a $30M contract for his client. Meanwhile, Ralph successfully defended an 8(a) prime contractor against a $3.8 million claim by a large subcontractor in a 3-day commercial arbitration trial. Furthermore, in 2015, he negotiated a seven-figure settlement from a defense military agency before the Armed Forces Board of Contract Appeals in a contract claim on behalf of a high-tech R&D Native-American-owned small business.

In 2014, Ralph won a bid protest before the GAO, which included a rare full hearing, on a $100+ million contract on behalf of a small business IT client, forcing a major civilian agency to take corrective action and re-evaluate the contract. That same year, only 13% of bid protests filed with the GAO were successful. Also, Ralph was successful in persuading the SBA to reverse its suspension of an IT contractor from the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program, after filing a civil action in a Federal District Court. In addition, Ralph successfully defended a woman-owned 8(a) small business against two size protest appeals. Moreover, he successfully petitioned an SBA Area Office to restore a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) to the status of “small.” Finally, Ralph assisted a small business owner in gaining SBA recognition as a Native American, which resulted in the company being accepted upon re-application to the SBA 8(a) Business Development Program.

In 2013, Ralph reached a favorable six-figure settlement with a major civilian federal agency for an SDVOSB whom he represented in a claim dispute for unpaid invoices before the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals.

In 2012, in a first- of- its- kind court challenge and a highly publicized case, he obtained a federal court order remanding the VA’s denial of his client’s verification as a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) back to the agency for reconsideration. Also in 2012, Ralph won a breach of contract claim against a defense agency on behalf of an 8(a)/SDVOSB woman-owned business after a 2-day trial before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals. In addition, Ralph won an SBA reversal of an initial denial from the SBA on behalf of a major corporation and an 8(a) construction firm which had applied for participation in the SBA’s Mentor-Protégé Program. Furthermore, Ralph successfully defended a woman-owned small business in suspension and debarment proceedings taken against both the owner and her company by a major civilian agency.

In 2011, Ralph filed two bid protests on behalf of a SDVOSB before the GAO where federal agencies in both cases agreed to take immediate corrective action prior to the issuance of a final decision. In 2010 Ralph preserved a $20M contract for an SDVOSB by assisting in defeating bid protests against the firm before both the GAO and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims as an Intervenor-Defendant.

In 2009, Ralph won a reversal and remand before OHA of a size protest against a small business that had been denied. In 2009 Ralph assisted in successfully defending a woman owned small business as an Intervenor-Defendant against a bid protest filed in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and preserved her status as one of the awardees of an IDIQ contract with a maximum value of $1B. In addition, Ralph’s successful representation of a woman-owned small business led to the U.S. Department of Justice dismissing a qui tam complaint filed against her company for an alleged Trade Agreements Act violation.

From 1992 – 2005 Ralph was the Associate Administrator for Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in Washington, D.C., where he reported directly to the head of NASA. Under Ralph’s leadership, NASA awarded more prime and subcontract dollars to all categories of small businesses than at any time in the Agency’s history. He received numerous awards, including the Presidential Rank of Distinguished Executive, an award restricted to 1 percent of the 6000 + Federal Senior Executive Service under President Bush, as well as the Presidential Rank of Meritorious Executive, an award limited to 5 percent of the Federal Senior Executive Service, under President Clinton. In addition, he received the coveted “Special Honour Award” from the World Association for Small & Medium Enterprises at its annual conference in Mumbai, India.

Prior to his tenure at NASA, Ralph was Executive Director of the National Association of Minority Contractors (1985-1992) at its headquarters in the District of Columbia. Before that, he was the founding partner of the law firm of Thomas, John & Everett in Washington, D.C., where he primarily represented companies with private and governmental contractual issues.

Ralph received his Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School and his Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from the University of California at Berkeley. He has authored more than 80 published articles and has testified in Congress more than 30 times on small business issues. He has been a speaker at small business conferences across the country as well as in countries abroad, including those in Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and South America. From 2012-2016, he was an Adjunct Professor of Law at Concord Law School of Kaplan University, where he taught “Representing Small Businesses in Government Contracting,” in the LL.M Small Business Practice Program. Since 2009, Ralph has been a Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales. He served four years in the U.S. Air Force, including one year in Vietnam, and achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant.