Equal Access to Justice Act: Use at Selected Labor and Employment Agencies

TL;DR

GAO reviewed Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) awards reported to the Administrative Conference of the United States for fiscal years 2019–2025 and found federal agencies reported paying, on average, over $116 million for about 15,000 EAJA awards per year. For the three labor and employment agencies GAO examined, the Department of Labor (DOL) reported 11 awards totaling about $547,601, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) reported 11 awards totaling about $436,913, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reported zero awards in that period. Stakeholders told GAO EAJA can enable representation for parties that otherwise could not afford litigation, but they also cited persistent challenges—most notably difficulty meeting eligibility requirements and proving “prevailing party” status, which stakeholders said has narrowed over time due to court decisions. The finding signals continued litigation exposure and potential fee liability for agencies and contractors engaged in labor and employment disputes. Contractors in legal services, labor and employment law, and related capture pipelines should monitor EAJA reporting trends at affected agencies and update capture, pricing, and risk assessments accordingly.

Key Points

• What happened: GAO’s review of EAJA reporting (FY2019–2025) shows agencies reported paying an average of over $116 million annually for about 15,000 EAJA awards; among the three agencies reviewed, DOL reported 11 awards (~$547,601), NLRB reported 11 awards (~$436,913), and EEOC reported none.
• Who is affected: Legal Services; Labor and Employment Law; Administrative Law — and specifically NAICS: 541110, 541199, 561110; agencies: DOL, NLRB, EEOC.
• Timeline: Fiscal years 2019–2025 (as used in the GAO review).
• What contractors should do NOW: Re-assess litigation exposure and fee-recovery risk in open and prospective matters involving affected agencies, adjust capture and pricing assumptions where EAJA exposure could affect award liability, and notify capture, legal, and proposal teams to watch for related solicitations or agency guidance.

Who Is Affected

• Market segments: Legal Services; Labor and Employment Law; Administrative Law.
• NAICS codes: 541110, 541199, 561110 (from segmentation).
• Agencies flagged in GAO’s review: DOL, NLRB, EEOC.
• Specific NAICS codes, agencies, and contract vehicles pending source review for any additional detail.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What did GAO find about EAJA awards overall?

A: GAO reported federal agencies disclosed paying, on average, over $116 million for about 15,000 EAJA awards per year for fiscal years 2019–2025. For the three agencies GAO reviewed, DOL and NLRB each reported 11 awards (totaling roughly $547,601 and $436,913 respectively) and EEOC reported no awards.

Q: What are stakeholders’ main concerns about EAJA?

A: Stakeholders said EAJA helps clients who otherwise could not pursue cases against the government but identified challenges such as meeting EAJA eligibility requirements and difficulty establishing “prevailing party” status—stakeholders noted courts have narrowed the definition over time.

Q: Does this report create new compliance obligations or deadlines for contractors?

A: Pending source review. The GAO review summarizes agency reporting and stakeholder views; it does not itself create statutory changes or new compliance deadlines in the material provided.

Definitions

• Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA): A statute authorizing award of legal fees to parties that prevail against the federal government and meet other eligibility criteria under certain circumstances (as described in the GAO Summary).
• Prevailing party: The party that has prevailed against the federal government for purposes of EAJA eligibility; GAO stakeholder interviews noted the judicial interpretation of this term has narrowed over time.

Intelligence Response

• Cabrillo Signals War Room — Already detected this event and delivered this briefing. Continuously monitors regulatory changes, contract vehicles, and policy shifts; event flagged based on GAO reporting of EAJA awards for FY2019–2025.
• Cabrillo Signals Match Engine — Automatically will rescore opportunity pipelines and active captures where EAJA exposure or agency litigation history could affect pricing or risk assessments.
• Cabrillo Signals Intelligence Hub — Tracks the affected agencies (DOL, NLRB, EEOC) and the listed NAICS codes; sets saved searches to alert when related follow-on solicitations, guidance, or agency reports appear on SAM.gov (System for Award Management) or agency sites.
• Proposal Studio (Proposal OS) and Proposal Studio Workflow Tracker — Use Proposal OS to update compliance matrices and win themes reflecting litigation and fee-risk exposure; use Workflow Tracker to route necessary legal reviews and keep audit-ready bid/no-bid decisions.

Who to notify now:

• Capture Lead — assess pipeline impact and adjust bid/no-bid thresholds.
• General Counsel / Lead Counsel — evaluate current matters for EAJA exposure and eligibility risk.
• Proposal Manager — incorporate EAJA risk into pricing and proposal compliance matrices.
• Business Development — track agency behavior for market intelligence.

First 48-hour playbook:

• Hour 0–4: Notify Capture Lead, General Counsel, Proposal Manager. Publish this flash brief into the capture folder. Trigger saved search in Cabrillo Signals Intelligence Hub for DOL/NLRB/EEOC updates.
• Hour 4–12: Run Match Engine rescore on active opportunities that list DOL, NLRB, or EEOC or match NAICS 541110/541199/561110. Flag opportunities with litigation or fee exposure for pricing review.
• Hour 12–24: Legal and Capture Leads review top-priority captures; Proposal OS owner updates compliance matrix and win themes to reflect EAJA considerations. Initiate targeted document requests or fact-finding on any live matters involving affected agencies.
• Hour 24–48: Finalize any immediate bid/no-bid decisions; route approvals through Proposal Studio Workflow Tracker’s 9-gate process for any solicitations affected by EAJA exposure. Schedule weekly watch updates from Signals War Room for new GAO, ACUS, or agency reporting.

Relevant internal reading:

• Primary hub: Winning Federal Contracts Guide (/insights/winning-federal-contracts)
• Related guides: CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification) Compliance Guide (/insights/cmmc-compliance-guide), CUI (Controlled Unclassified Information)-Safe CRM Guide (/insights/cui-safe-crm-guide)