Legal Services

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS (OJP) LEGAL SUPPORT SERVICES This Sources Sought is being released pursuant to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Part 10 Market Research. The information collected through the process is considered to be market research as described by FAR 2.101 and in accordance with FAR 10.002. This is NOT a Request for Proposal (RFP), and nothing shall be construed herein or through the Sources Sought process to commit or obligate the Government to further action. In addition, vendors responding to this RFI shall bear all risks and expenses of any resources used to provide the requested information. The submission of capability information in response to this market survey is purely voluntary. The Department of Justice (DOJ), the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) is issuing this RFI/Sources Sought to identify qualified and responsible 8(a) vendors having an interest in and possess the resources to provide Legal assistance and advice to the OJP's Bureau of Justice Assistance's (BJA) Public Safety Officer's Benefit Program (PSOB), the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) and the Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking (SMART) Office on legal issues arising from these organizations' role in providing federal leadership in developing the nation's capacity to provide and control crime, improve the criminal and juvenile justice systems, increase knowledge about crime and related issues and assist crime victims. The Government intends to issue an 8(a) contract for these services. The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code assigned to these proposed services is 541110. Task 1, BJA PSOB Legal Services: In an average year, PSOB receives approximately 350 death claims, 100 disability claims, and 250 educational claims. In addition, claims from previous years must also be processed. There are approximately 900 claims that will require some type of legal review and analysis by contract attorneys and/or law clerk/paralegal. Contract attorneys and law clerk/paralegal contract staff shall conduct legal review of PSOB claims pursuant to the PSOB Act, implementing regulations, and other applicable law, and provide a written recommendation to PSOB Counsel as to whether claims are legally sufficient. Task 2, OCR Legal Services: The Office for Civil Rights provides support, including the offering of legal and policy advice, to the Review Panel on Prison Rape (Panel), which was established pursuant to the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA), 42 U.S.C. 15601-15609 (2006) (Pub. L. No. 108-79, 117 Stat. 972). The contractor shall provide the OCR qualified attorneys who will perform various contract requirements related to the OCR's responsibilities to support the PREA Review Panel i.e., at a minimum, assist OCR personnel in conducting legal research of pertinent issues related to implementing PREA, preparing legal memoranda and other documents, drafting reports on site visits to prisons, jails and juvenile correctional facilities, and participating in work groups in order to craft guidance documents for facilities subject to the PREA Standards. Task 3, Smart Office Legal Service: The SMART Office currently has approximately 165 Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) tribal registration jurisdictions that will require review and legal determinations of their statutory, regulatory and administrative schemes. The contractor shall, at a minimum, provide qualified legal staff to work with OJP Senior Policy Advisors to conduct a legal review and analysis of the implementation and assurance submissions by tribes and provide guidance and advice to OJP Senior Policy Advisors and Senior Staff within SMART, as well as to the tribal jurisdictions, as necessary. At a minimum, the contractor shall provide qualified staff to conduct legal review and analysis of the registration jurisdiction materials as submitted to the SMART Office and conduct reviews of substantial implementation packages and implementation assurance documents submitted to the SMART Office by SORNA tribal jurisdictions. This work will include review of documents submitted, including codes and statutes, policies and procedures, and documentation related to Federal databases and the requirements for websites linked to the National Sex Offender Public Website (NSOPW), memoranda of understanding and cooperative agreements in order to assess tribes' conformity with SORNA standards. Qualified staff will prepare reports to the tribal nations and memoranda of recommendation for submission to both the OJP OGC and the Director of the SMART Office. Personnel Requirements: Attorneys, at a minimum, shall be admitted to the bar (with active status) and licensed to practice in at least one State, the District of Columbia, or in one of the principal US territories, with active status. Law clerks, at a minimum, shall be required to have a Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution and shall be a law student or law school graduate. Legal staff, at a minimum, shall have experience in criminal justice matters and in reviewing statutory schemes. Respondents to this RFI shall provide the following information: a) Vendor background summary including, contractor name, address, DUNS, point of contact information, email, phone, website address, and 8(a) certification number and documentation, and any GSA schedule number. b) Tailored capability statements addressing the particulars of this effort, with appropriate documentation supporting claims of organizational and staff capability. If subcontracting or teaming is anticipated in order to deliver technical capability, organizations should address the administrative and management structure of such arrangements. c) Past Performance- Provide a list of previous contracts where legal support advisory services were provided. Provide customer/Government Agency contact information where these services were provided including: contact name and organization, telephone number, and email address. The Government will evaluate market information to ascertain potential market capacity to provide services consistent in scope described in this notice and otherwise anticipated. PLEASE BE INFORMED THAT THIS IS AN 8(a) REQUIREMENT. Any vendor that responds to this Sources Sought that cannot prove 8(a) certification will not be considered. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged, and no feedback or evaluations will be provided to companies regarding their submissions. Submission Instructions: Interested 8(a) vendors who consider themselves qualified to perform the above-listed services are invited to submit a response to this Sources Sought Notice by Thursday, May 15, 2014 at 1:00 PM. All responses under this Sources Sought Notice must be emailed to contact@example.gov.