Government Grants: Transactional Support

Venable’s federal grants attorneys provide strategic and practical support for federally funded projects, guiding clients through the planning, drafting, and negotiation of subrecipient agreements and other compliant contractual arrangements to ensure effective collaboration and successful project implementation.

Our team assists clients in the strategic planning, drafting, and negotiation necessary to successfully implement multi-party projects. We help with project design considerations, such as deciding on the most useful agreement type for each project, crafting agreements tailored to client goals, and negotiation of agreements with partners and counterparties. Agreement support includes, but is not limited to, assistance with:

  • Assessing and advising on the nature of a relationship with a third party (i.e., subrecipient or contractor determination), per the requirements of 2 C.F.R. § 200.331
  • Subrecipient agreements, tailored as appropriate for social service delivery, conservation, research, or infrastructure development
  • Contracts for supplies, services, and construction needed for project accomplishment, including management of federally required terms and assistance with federally mandated procurement processes
  • Shared services agreements for technical collaboration or provision of back-office and administrative services among related parties
  • Project participation agreements for scenarios in which beneficiary entities have important obligations
  • Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA) for collaboration with federal laboratories
  • Addressing subrecipient oversight and compliance issues that arise from time to time
  • Other specially tailored agreements as needed, case by case

Our attorneys help clients structure agreements that align program objectives with federal requirements and industry standards. We advise on procurement obligations and public policy terms in infrastructure projects, including Davis-Bacon Act compliance, domestic sourcing requirements, and disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) goals. In the research context, we manage intellectual property considerations, while for social service programs we address key compliance needs such as personnel costs, beneficiary eligibility, and data reporting. No matter the issue, our team leverages its experience in federal funding and related disciplines to provide comprehensive, tailored solutions to clients that are leading, or participating in, multi-party projects.

Representative Matters
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  • Served as outsource contract counsel for a newly created state agency administering over a billion dollars in HUD funds. Representation included designing, developing, and implementing contract and grant policies and procedures, including personal and organizational conflict-of-interest policies and procedures; preparing contract and subrecipient agreement templates, including individualized agreements and master agreements; drafting and implementing document retention policies, procedures, and practices; training legal staff on applicable laws and regulations, as well as newly implemented policies and procedures; and assisting and advising staff on subrecipient and contract negotiations, revised terms, etc.
  • Serve as outsourced contracts/subgrant counsel for several national nonprofit organizations. This includes but is not limited to drafting and negotiating subrecipient agreements, procurement documents and non-disclosure agreements, and related policies and procedures; preparation of partnership, teaming, joint venture, and other related documents; training staff on applicable laws, regulations, policies, and procedures; and defending policies, procedures, and documentation in federal funding agency audits
  • Assisting an organization in developing subgrant and contract agreements under an Other Transactional Authority (OTA) agreement with NIH. Effort includes negotiation of numerous agreements with small and national nonprofits, as well as public and private universities, many of which are subject to differing laws and regulations
  • Drafted and tailored shared services agreements for multiple large nonprofits in the healthcare sector, through which related legal entities under the control of a single parent corporation share administrative and specialized services for reduced cost
  • Assisted clients with structural planning, agreement drafting and negotiation, and coordination with Department of Energy (DOE) for necessary approvals for multiple demonstration projects valued collectively at several hundred million dollars for renewables
  • Assisted nonprofit clients in research and demonstration projects in negotiating CRADA terms with DoD and DOE
  • Assisted a large nonprofit in negotiating terms of a novel OTA valued at several billion dollars, drawing upon comparative concepts from both 2 C.F.R. Part 200 and the Federal Acquisition Regulation and applicability of various background federal policy requirements, from Davis Bacon Labor standards to intellectual property terms; and assisted same entity in crafting subagreements of various types
  • Assisted multiple mid-sized nonprofits in establishing subaward management systems for projects involving large numbers of small nonprofit and public entity subrecipient participants, including drafting of standardized agreements, negotiation of agreements with subrecipients, and guidance on oversight systems