## Facts

- The U.S. Army solicited bids for self-powered rifle-light attachments using a negotiated procurement process.
- Self-Powered Lighting, Ltd., a New York manufacturer of military equipment, submitted a bid but the Army awarded the contract to Saunders-Roe Developments, Ltd., a U.K. company, on July 31, 1979.
- Self-Powered sued seeking a declaration that the award was void and an injunction to stop payments under the contract, alleging violations of the Administrative Procedure Act, the Armed Services Procurement Act, the Buy American Act, and Defense Acquisition Regulations.
- Self-Powered claimed the award was arbitrary and that Saunders’s bid was noncompliant with solicitation requirements.
- A U.S.–U.K. defense procurement Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) sought reciprocal defense purchasing and exempted covered defense procurements from buy-national laws; the Secretary of Defense implemented an exemption from Buy American Act restrictions for U.K.-produced defense equipment, subject to stated exclusions.
- Self-Powered argued the exemption should be limited to foreign purchases for NATO use in Europe or to equipment intended for NATO interoperability, not to the procurement at issue.
- Self-Powered also asserted the rifle lights implicated hazardous nuclear materials and that Saunders, as a foreign firm, could not lawfully perform due to licensing and regulatory compliance concerns.
- The court denied a preliminary injunction for failure to show possible irreparable harm or a favorable balance of hardships.
- After bid-protest review, the Comptroller General upheld the procurement’s legality; the case proceeded on the government’s summary-judgment motion.

## Issues

1. Whether an unsuccessful bidder had standing to challenge a federal procurement award under the Administrative Procedure Act and related procurement statutes and regulations.
2. If standing existed, whether the Army’s negotiated procurement and bid evaluation were arbitrary, capricious, or contrary to procurement law.
3. Whether the Buy American Act barred award to a U.K. firm notwithstanding a defense MOU and a Secretary of Defense public-interest exemption.
4. Whether alleged licensing and hazardous-materials regulatory issues rendered the award unlawful.

## Decision

- The court granted summary judgment for the United States and the named Army officials.
- The court held Self-Powered, as a disappointed bidder, lacked standing to obtain the requested declaratory and injunctive relief.
- In the alternative, assuming standing, the court held the procurement was lawful and the award to Saunders was valid.
- The court rejected challenges to negotiated procurement, bid responsiveness, the Buy American Act objection, and the licensing/regulatory theories.
- The requested relief was denied and the contract remained in effect.

## Legal Principles

- A disappointed bidder may be denied standing to challenge a procurement award; even where broader bidder-standing doctrines exist, a plaintiff must still satisfy applicable standing requirements.
- In reviewing procurement decisions, courts generally defer to contracting officials’ discretion absent a showing that agency action was arbitrary, capricious, or contrary to law.
- The Buy American Act permits public-interest exceptions; where the executive branch adopts a valid exemption grounded in an intergovernmental defense procurement agreement, covered foreign-sourced defense equipment may be procured without a domestic preference.
- Allegations that a foreign contractor cannot comply with licensing or regulatory requirements do not invalidate an award where the record shows compliance through an authorized U.S. representative and no legal violation or abuse of discretion is demonstrated.
- Summary judgment is appropriate where the record shows no genuine dispute of material fact and the procurement complies with applicable statutes and regulations.

## Conclusion

The court entered summary judgment for the government, holding that the disappointed bidder lacked standing and, in any event, the Army lawfully used negotiated procurement and could award the contract to a U.K. supplier under a valid Buy American Act public-interest exemption implemented pursuant to a U.S.–U.K. defense procurement MOU.


Self-Powered Lighting, Ltd. v. United States, 492 F. Supp. 1267 (S.D.N.Y. 1980)