A Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani team led by Anchorage Partner John Crone successfully represented a nonprofit accelerator focused on deploying decarbonization technologies in a high-stakes dispute over the abrupt termination of a $5 million federal grant.
GRSM’s client had been awarded the grant by a government agency supporting national defense research and innovation. On April 30, 2025, the agency unexpectedly terminated the grant, citing shifting priorities but failing to offer any factual justification for the decision. GRSM filed suit on behalf of the nonprofit, arguing that the termination was arbitrary and unsupported, and sought immediate judicial intervention to protect the organization’s critical funding.
With both sitting federal judges in the district recused, a specially appointed judge presided over the matter. The judge granted GRSM’s client’s motion for a preliminary injunction, vacating the agency’s termination of the grant. The court also denied the agency’s motion to dismiss on jurisdictional grounds, which raised complex questions about whether the nonprofit’s complaint should have been filed in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims under the Tucker Act. A similar jurisdictional issue was recently addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court in Dep’t of Educ. v. California, 145 S. Ct. 996 (2025).
This result highlights the strength of GRSM’s Government Contracts practice in navigating nuanced jurisdictional challenges and defending client interests in mission-critical federal funding disputes. GRSM attorneys bring deep experience in administrative and public law litigation, ensuring effective advocacy for clients operating at the intersection of law, policy, and innovation.