Justification and Approval redacted WestLaw.pdf

Control No: FY25 0001

Memorandum for Record – Limiting Competition at or below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold

1. Contracting Activity: Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Contracting Activity.

2. Description of Action:

Nature: New Requirement

Contract Vehicle: Purchase Order Number ____TBA______________

Pricing/Contract Type: Fixed

Funds: FY: 2025_Yes_

Name of Proposed Contractor(s) and Address:

West Publishing Corporation- West, A Thomson Reuters Business 2900 Ames Crossing RD STE 100 Eagan, Minnesota 55121-2498, United States

Brand Name Buy: Yes No

3. Description of Services or Supplies: WestLaw provides a legal search engine and contains different search service subscriptions. WestLaw All Analytical gives you unlimited access to the All Analytical Library on WestlawNext, with over 600 law reviews and journals. Westlaw Precision with CoCounsel combines generative AI (GenAI) with Westlaw Precision’s industry-leading content, editorial enhancements, and decades of legal industry expertise. West km Government Express, a legal research product that integrates KeyCite and full-text search technology with your organization’s internal documents. West km Government Express allows you to easily find and reuse your organization’s best work. Lastly, PeopleMap Premier + Company Investigator provides comprehensive information on both people and businesses, with access billions of public and proprietary records, time-saving features, alerts, and reports, among other documents.

OGC currently requires four (4) subscriptions for each of the above-listed WestLaw services, except for PeopleMap Premier + Company. For PeopleMap Premier + Company, OGC only currently needs one (1) subscription for the attorney who is leading the effort to conduct DNFSB’s ongoing safety investigation; other attorneys could foreseeably need this service if they supplement the investigation efforts, but DNFSB only needs one (1) subscription as of yet.

This purchase will be made under the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) and the agency plans to procure the services from Thomson Reuters, the company who owns the WestLaw brand of legal search services.

Base Period: 3/1/2025 to 2/28/2026 Value: $19,873.44 Option Period 1: 3/1/2026 to 2/28/2027 Value: $19,873.44 Option Period 2: 3/1/2027 to 2/28/2028 Value: $19,873.44 Option Period 3: 3/1/2028 to 2/28/2029 Value: $19,873.44 Option Period 4: 3/1/2029 to 2/28/2030 Value: $19,873.44 FAR Clause 52.217-8 option: 3/1/2030 to 8/31/2030_

Value: $9,936.72 Total: $109,303.92

4. Authority:

FAR 13.106-1(b)(1): For purchases not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT), only one source reasonably available, urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, brand name, or industrial mobilization.

5. Reasons for Authority Cited:

This brand-name subscription is the only brand that will meet the agency’s needs.

DNFSB has used WestLaw services for the past five years through a different contract vehicle which is set to expire at the end of February. As a result of OGC’s WestLaw usage, the agency has kept privileged legal documents on the West km drive that the agency must keep for posterity, records management, and potential litigation. The agency also needs the brand-name services provided by WestLaw’s search engines because the search engine is more user-friendly than other legal search engines, thus yielding efficient results when OGC attorneys conduct research.

There are not many other search engines similar to WestLaw except for LexisNexis.

Both systems allow terms and connectors searching. However, Westlaw also provides Additional Relevant Westsearch cases using the Westsearch algorithm, in addition to terms and connectors results. WestLaw also makes it easier to cite cases in different formats. The services provided by WestLaw thus make the services peculiar to them as a manufacturer, and the agency seeks a brand-name procurement for that reason.

Procuring the services directly from WestLaw/Thomson Reuters will save the agency money on these services because DNFSB’s alternative option would be to buy the services through a reseller, whose only involvement in providing services would be as a go-between agent, resulting in a markup in price. Using another legal service would lead to a degradation in search services and, more importantly, the loss of West km which would hinder/halt the OGC K drive on the agency’s network.

6. Publicizing Contract Actions: For FAR Part 13 actions, the public display and synopsis requirements of FAR 5.101 and FAR 5.203 do not apply due to the $ threshold

Requirement to post justification in accordance with FAR 13.105(c)

Action is a brand name restriction, over $25K. It will be redacted and posted with the solicitation.

7. Market Research: OGC considered other legal search engines when deciding that the brand-name purchase would be the only option to suit the agency’s needs. The agency used the contract with EBSCO, which sold WestLaw Services to the agency under a prior contract, in determining price reasonableness when compared to the quote provided by Thomson Reuters.

8. Other Facts: Not applicable. This requirement has no procurement history.

9. Technical/Requirements Certification: I certify that the supporting data under my cognizance which are included in the justification are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Typed Name: Daniel O’Connor Date:

Title:

Signature:

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10. Contracting Officer Certification/Approval:

I hereby determine that the anticipated cost or price to the Government for this contract action will be fair and reasonable based upon price analysis.

I certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief, and that completing this purchase as a sole source is in the best interest of the Government. Additionally, I approve this justification to limit competition subject to the availability of funds and provided that the services or supplies herein described have otherwise been authorized for acquisition.

Typed Name: Adriana Underdue Date: February 18, 2025 Title: Contracting Officer

Signature:

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ADRIANA

UNDERDUE

Digitally signed by

ADRIANA UNDERDUE

Date: 2025.02.18 15:52:35 -05'00'