Fern is pleased to join the Foundry team in December 2022, bringing 25 years of experience in federal government contracting law practice. Prior to joining the firm, Fern held the positions of General Counsel and Executive Vice President, serving as a trusted advisor in complex federal contracting and governance matters.

Fern’s areas of experience and expertise include:

• DoD Business Systems – guiding certification and interaction with DCAA, DCMA and third-party auditors
• GSA Schedules and Contractor Teaming Arrangements (CTAs)
• Bid protest
• Contract claims
• Small business, mentor-protégé arrangements and joint ventures
• Facility clearance and personal security clearance adjudication matters
• Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) and Personal Conflict of Interest (PCI) identification and resolution
• Design and delivery of federal contractor ethics and compliance training and Codes of Conduct manuals
• Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
• Other Transaction Authority (OTA)
• Applicability and compliance reviews of regulatory requirements affecting contractors, such as Procurement Integrity, Truthful Cost & Pricing, False Claims Act, Ethics Reform Act
• Full lifecycle development of compliant, competitive cost proposals in response to federal procurements
• Drafting, review and negotiation of business-supporting contracts and agreements
• Negotiation of data and Intellectual Property rights under federal contracts

In her role as Executive Vice President, Fern provided advisory services to other company principals as well as board members in the following, additional areas:

• Risk assessment and management
• Integrated back-office compliance programs and reviews
• Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP) – development and execution
• Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) and ISO 9001, 20000, 27001 and CMMC (in then-current iterations of the model)
• Property and casualty insurance procurement
• Corporate governance and records retention

Fern completed Leadership at the Peak® executive training through the Center for Creative Leadership in 2021, and she is a 2015 recipient of SmartCEO’s Executive Management Award, as well as receiving multiple internal company awards from prior employers (including Founder’s award).

Fern received her Juris Doctor degree from George Mason School of Law and is admitted to the Virginia bar.

Meet Fern:

In her spare time, Fern enjoys walking (comically fast) for exercise in nearby NOVA Burke Lake Park and paddleboarding and rowing in summers. She also enjoys volunteering to support her daughter’s high school band program. Being a Michigan native, Fern enjoys rooting for teams to beat THE Ohio State University.