Speaker 06.17.25
06.17
Pillsbury’s Annual West Coast Government Contracts Summit
7:30AM - 3:00PM PDT
Alexandria at Torrey Pines
10996 Torreyana Road
San Diego, CA 92121
Mary Buxton represents clients in a wide variety of matters, including Contract Disputes Act certified claims, contract terminations, bid protests, M&A, size protests and appeals, and California state and local matters.
A government contracts lawyer, Mary prepares Contract Disputes Act certified claims; resolves contract disputes before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA), the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA), and California federal and state courts; and leads termination disputes at the federal level. She leads Pillsbury’s Claims and Terminations government contracts practice. Mary also focuses on California state and local procurement matters and co-authors the authoritative publication on California state and local government contracts, the “California Procurement Handbook.”
Mary regularly litigates bid protests at the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and serves as Government Contracts counsel for M&A transactions. Mary also has an active pro bono practice.
Representative Experience
- Successfully prosecuted and defended more than 20 protests covering a wide range of procurements, including in the fields of aerospace and defense, health care and information technology.
- Represented a public utility in a $100 million negotiation for the privatization of a natural gas utility system on a U.S. military installation.
- Successful protest of the Air Force’s decision to remove client from competition in $2 billion Brooks Act procurement, resulting in published decision which sustains all five protest grounds and requires reimbursement of attorneys’ fees. Evergreen JV, B-418475.4, Sept. 23, 2020.
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- Successful protest challenging the Navy’s rejection of Harper’s proposal for a $50+ million hanger facility construction project. Harper Constr. Co. Inc., B-415042; B-415042.2, Nov. 7, 2017.
- Successful protest of $65 million award for Navy base operations and administrative support services, challenging the agency’s proposal evaluations following corrective action and resulting in further corrective action. eAlliant LLC, B-407332.6, B-407332.10, Jan. 14, 2015.
- Successful protest of $543 million award for Department of Veterans Affairs real-time location system, challenging the agency’s best-value discriminators and proposal evaluations. IBM Corp., U.S. Federal, B- 406934, B- 406934.2, B-406934.3, Oct. 3, 2012, 2013 CPD 89.
Professional Highlights
Honors and Awards
- Recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch (published by BL Rankings LLC) for Administrative/Regulatory Law (2023 – 2025)
Speaking Engagements
- “Jurisdiction Under the CDA: Practice Pointers to Assist Contractors’ Efforts to Secure Jurisdiction and Defeat Government Efforts to Challenge It,” Pillsbury’s 2024 West Coast Government Contracts Summit, San Diego, May 16, 2024
- “The Contract Disputes Act Covers Terminations Too: Trends in Default Termination Litigation, Convenience Terminations and Mitigation Strategies,” Pillsbury’s 2023 West Coast Government Contracts Summit, San Diego, April 20, 2023
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- “Navigating Bid Protests in Changing Times,” Pillsbury’s 5th Annual West Coast Government Contracts Summit, Carlsbad, CA, May 9, 2019
Education
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J.D., Pepperdine University School of Law, 2009
cum laudeB.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 2004
Admissions
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California
Courts
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U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit