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Joshua Duvall was quoted by Law360 in its article "SBA Small Biz Program Changes Likely To Limit Participation." In July, U.S. District Judge Clifton L. Corker (E.D. Tennessee) held in Ultima Servs. Corp. v. U.S. Dep't of Agric. that the "rebuttable presumption" of social disadvantage under SBA's 8(a) program regulations violated a plaintiff's Fifth Amendment right to equal protection under the U.S. Constitution. As a result, the court enjoined SBA from using the rebuttable presumption in administering the 8(a) program.

In discussing the court's decision and SBA's recent guidance in response, which changed SBA's 8(a) program requirements for both prospective and current individual-owned 8(a) concerns, Duvall said, "'It's safe to say it's in the thousands' of companies that will be affected, 'because the categories that are covered under the rebuttable presumption are quite broad under SBA's current regulatory regime[.]'"

To read the full article on Law360, click here

For our analysis on the impact of the court's decision in Ultima, click here.

For information on SBA's response, click here and here.