1. INTRODUCTION & STATUTORY AUTHORITY
The United States Coast Guard (USCG), Headquarters Contract Division 4 (CG-HCA-COCO-41), on behalf of the Office of Legal Policy and Program Development (USCG-LPD), intends to negotiate on a sole-source basis with Mitratech, located in Conshohocken, PA.
The proposed contract action is to acquire proprietary software licenses, custom support services, ongoing maintenance, and upgrades for the Law Manager software application.
The Government intends to solicit and negotiate this requirement under the statutory authority of:
- 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) or 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1), as implemented by FAR Subpart 6.302-1(a)(2)(iii): "Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements."
This notice of intent is not a request for competitive proposals. However, all responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation, which shall be considered by the agency.
2. DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENT
The USCG Office of Legal Policy and Program Development (USCG-LPD) has a continuous, mission-critical requirement to obtain technical support services, maintenance support, software upgrades, and application modifications for the Law Manager software. Law Manager serves as the primary system of record and workload repository for approximately 300+ Coast Guard Legal Program personnel across Coast Guard Headquarters, ten District legal offices, several base legal offices, the Office of Physical Disability Evaluations, and their respective clients.
Key System Specifications & Structure
The Law Manager system comprises six main notebooks/tabs used for tracking, docketing, and case management across all USCG legal practice areas:
- Entity: Tracks units and individuals associated with cases (witnesses, counsel, judges, experts, plaintiffs, defendants).
- Matter: Handles legal assistance files and general legal inquiries.
- Military Justice: Manages military justice actions (e.g., courts-martial) and calculates the Speedy Trial Clock fields based on charges and calendars.
- Physical Disability (PDES): Evaluates cases for personnel seeking disability benefits.
- Regulations: Tracks the drafting, clearance, and review of regulatory documents.
- Claims/Litigation: Tracks affirmative and defensive claims and litigation for or against the USCG.
The software is accessed via both a heavy client-installed application (for bulk data entry and speed) and a secure web application (primarily for reservists and personnel outside the Coast Guard Data Network).
Scope of Work & Deliverables
The contractor will be responsible for the following core tasks:
- Ongoing Maintenance & Technical Support: Deliver modified production code, technical documentation, operational procedures, and product updates to ensure zero-error system performance during normal business hours.
- System Configuration & Custom Modifications: Assist with minor configuration changes (e.g., adding/removing fields, re-labeling existing fields, enhancing functionality as the application-image evolves).
- Software Upgrades & Security Patches: Provide and assist in the installation of all software upgrades, tool sets, and database environment updates.
- Testing: Develop Conformance Acceptance Testing (CAT) plans and run verification test scripts with mock data for adding, updating, finding, and deleting records within all system notebooks.
- Optional Report Writing Tool (Section 2.3.1): Acquire a fully compatible, vendor-supported ad hoc report writing and querying tool.
- Optional Support Hours (Section 2.3.2): Secure up to 1,000 hours of custom technical support to execute USCG-specific modifications.
3. ESTIMATED VALUE & PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE
The Government anticipates awarding a Fixed Price contract with an estimated total value of $828,845 covering a one (1) year base period and four (4) consecutive one-year option periods:
Base Year
Period of Performance
Start Date: September 30, 2026
End Date September 29, 2027
Option Year 1
September 30, 2027-
September 29, 2028
Option Year 2
September 30, 2028-
September 29, 2029
Option Year 3
September 30, 2029-
September 29, 2030
Option Year 4
September 30, 2030-
September 29, 2031
4. SOLE SOURCE DETERMINATION RATIONALE
The Law Manager application is a highly customized, proprietary commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software system. Mitratech is the developer, sole intellectual property owner, and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of Law Manager.
The justification for sole-source award to Mitratech is based on the following critical technical factors:
- Access to Source Code & Engineers: Mitratech has sole access to the software engineers who created Law Manager and is the only entity that can resolve deep-level software bugs or configure the application to integrate smoothly with the Coast Guard's standard operating image. Mitratech personnel possess exclusive access to the proprietary source code for current and future releases.
- Proprietary Technical Documentation: Mitratech personnel utilize proprietary technical documentation and receive unique, specialized internal training/briefings directly from the Law Manager product development team that are unavailable to any third party.
- Restricted Licensing Policy: Mitratech does not re-license its maintenance agreements for upgrades. No other vendor in the market owns the rights or data to Thomson Elite’s original source code or Mitratech's proprietary assets.
- Mission Criticality: This software is vital to daily USCG legal operations. Specifically, attorneys must perform immediate, reliable conflict-of-interest checks within the Law Manager database before consulting with clients. It is also the sole vehicle for workload metrics and resource allocation reporting at Coast Guard Headquarters.
- Significant Cost & Legacy History: In 1999, the Coast Guard abandoned its efforts to migrate mission-critical applications from legacy CTOS to Windows due to database porting failures. After a rigorous selection process, the USCG selected and deployed Law Manager in 2001. A replacement effort would lead to a massive duplication of costs (including a minimum of $828,845 in support, plus undocumented system engineering, data migration, and extensive staff retraining costs) and severe, unacceptable operational disruptions that are impossible to recover through competition.
5. SUBMISSION OF CAPABILITY STATEMENTS
Interested firms who believe they can fully meet the Government's requirement may submit a capability statement. Because Mitratech does not re-license its maintenance agreements or share its proprietary source code, any responding firm must provide clear, undeniable written proof of their legal right, authorized partner status, and independent capability to modify and upgrade the Law Manager application without voiding current licensing, warranties, or security configurations.
At a minimum, responses must include:
- Company Profile: Name, physical address, Point of Contact (POC), UEI number, Cage Code, and business size under NAICS 541519.
- Authorized Documentation: Written authorization directly from the OEM (Mitratech) confirming the respondent has full access to, and authority to edit, the proprietary source code and technical documentation.
- Staffing Qualifications: Demonstration of qualified personnel (e.g., Project Manager) available during standard business hours (0800–1600 EST) to meet all SOW requirements.
- Technical Qualifications: A detailed description of the firm's experience supporting Law Manager platforms within the federal sector.
- Staffing Capabilities: Evidence of qualified personnel (such as a Project Manager meeting the SOW standard of M-F, 0800-1600 EST availability) capable of managing the transition, Conformance Acceptance Testing (CAT), and custom programming requirements.
Capability statements must be submitted electronically via email to the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist listed below no later than September 16, 2026, 3:00 PM EST.
