When performing work under federal grants and cooperative agreements, recipients often collaborate with partner organizations to maximize strengths and minimize weaknesses.  Which party or parties will carry out what portions of the work, which will lead and which will follow, and how the legal and contracting departments of each entity will respond to negotiation of the legal instruments reducing those relationships to writing are all critical steps on the road to a successful project - and hopefully many more collaborations over the long term.  Despite seemingly restrictive federal requirements, there remain many ways to structure collaborative projects.  Understanding how to take advantage of flexibility in the federal system without creating unintended performance risk can set you apart in a system that, at first, appears rigid.  Join FTLF Partner Scott S. Sheffler, Esq. to examine collaborative performance options in a federally funded environment, working from underlying strategic considerations through practical negotiation points and ultimately to key relevant terms in the resulting agreements.

Presenter:

Mr. Sheffler is a partner with the Washington, DC law firm of Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP and has extensive experience in the areas of federal grant law, government contract law, and health care law.  Mr. Sheffler leverages this experience to provide practical and comprehensive solutions in complex compliance environments, representing private and public entity grantees of all types across diverse federal programs, including social service, scientific research, and conservation programs.

 
Skill Level:
Mid-Career

Learning Path: 
Federal Grants

GPC Competencies:
Post-award grant management practices sufficient to inform effective grant design and development