AI for government contracts lawyers: subcontracts, teaming agreements and NDAs in Word

Government contracts lawyers spend much of their time on the commercial layer under a prime contract: subcontracts, teaming agreements, NDAs, consulting agreements and supplier terms. The work is repetitive in the best sense: the same flowdown questions, the same IP and data rights fights, the same termination and disputes clauses. AI can do the first pass so you spend your time on the parts that need a government contracts specialist.

Plain answer first: LexDraft does not have a FAR, DFARS or government subcontract playbook. Two of its four built-in playbooks apply in part: the NDA playbook for proposal-stage NDAs, and the Services playbook for services subcontracts and consulting agreements (scope and change control, IP ownership and licence, payment and termination). Everything specific to government contracting, including clause flowdowns, you check yourself.

A word on controlled data first

Do not put Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), export-controlled technical data under ITAR (22 C.F.R. Parts 120 to 130) or the EAR, or classified information into any AI tool that is not authorised for it, and that includes LexDraft. The CUI program (32 C.F.R. Part 2002) and DFARS 252.204-7012 set safeguarding requirements for covered defense information, and an export can occur simply by releasing technical data to a foreign person or server. Review the contract terms, not the technical annexes, and redact before you run a review if in doubt.

Where AI helps

• Proposal-stage NDAs. Run the NDA playbook. Then check the government-specific points: marking requirements, disclosure to the government customer, and how the NDA interacts with any later teaming agreement.
• Services subcontracts. Run the Services playbook for the commercial terms. Findings come back graded Critical, High, Medium or Low, with missing standard terms flagged.
• Teaming agreements. Run a general review with the governing-law state selected. Teaming agreements often fail as agreements to agree: in Cyberlock Consulting, Inc. v. Information Experts, Inc. (Va. 2013), a commitment to negotiate a post-award subcontract was held unenforceable. Exclusivity, workshare and the obligation to subcontract need concrete terms if you want them to bind.
• Long subcontracts. The defined-term and cross-reference checks are rule-based and catch broken references in subcontracts that incorporate pages of clauses by reference.

Government contracts points to check yourself

• Mandatory flowdowns. FAR 52.244-6 lists the clauses a prime must flow down in subcontracts for commercial products and commercial services; other FAR and DFARS clauses carry their own flowdown instructions. Check that each flowdown is required, correctly adapted ("Contractor" read as "Subcontractor") and not over-applied.
• Cybersecurity. DFARS 252.204-7012 must flow down where a subcontractor will handle covered defense information, with NIST SP 800-171 controls and 72-hour incident reporting. The CMMC program rule (32 C.F.R. Part 170) took effect in December 2024, and CMMC requirements are being phased into DoD solicitations and contracts. Check the level each subcontract requires.
• Covered telecommunications. FAR 52.204-25 (section 889) restricts certain Chinese telecommunications and video surveillance equipment and services.
• Small business rules. Limitations on subcontracting (FAR 52.219-14) cap the share of work a small business prime can pass to non-similarly situated subcontractors. Workshare terms in teaming agreements must respect it.
• Ethics and compliance. FAR 52.203-13 (contractor code of business ethics and mandatory disclosure) and the Anti-Kickback Act (41 U.S.C. 8701 and following) reach subcontract relationships.
• IP and data rights. FAR 52.227-14 and the DFARS 252.227 clauses decide what rights the government gets. Make sure the subcontract does not hand the prime more rights than the government needs.
• Disputes and termination. Subcontractors have no privity with the government, so check sponsorship of pass-through claims, termination for convenience mirroring, and flowdown of the Disputes clause.
• Clause numbers are moving. The FAR is being rewritten under the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul that began in 2025, so confirm current clause numbers and text against the solicitation and agency deviations.

A workflow in Word with LexDraft

1. Open the subcontract, teaming agreement or NDA in Word, with technical data and CUI removed, and open LexDraft in the side panel.
2. Choose the NDA or Services playbook where it fits, or select the governing-law state and run a general review for teaming agreements.
3. Run the defined-term and cross-reference quick checks.
4. Accept the word-level redlines you agree with as native Word tracked changes.
5. Work through the flowdown and compliance points above yourself.

What LexDraft does not do

LexDraft has no FAR, DFARS or government contracts playbook. It does not check clause flowdowns, track FAR changes, assess CMMC or export control compliance, or give legal advice, and it is not an authorised system for CUI, export-controlled or classified data. AI review can miss issues or be wrong, so read every marked-up document yourself.

Using AI ethically

ABA Formal Opinion 512 (July 2024) and many state bars say the same four things: understand the tool, protect client confidences, check every output, and bill fairly for AI-assisted work. Our state-by-state guide to AI ethics for lawyers covers all 50 states and D.C.

Plans

Start on the Free plan: 5,000 generated words a month, no time limit and no credit card. Professional is $99 a month or $990 a year for 100,000 words a month. Business is $199 a month or $1,990 a year with unlimited words. LexDraft runs in Word 365 (Windows and Mac), Word 2021 and Word on the web, and it does not use customer documents to train models.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. LexDraft does not give legal advice; qualified counsel must review every draft. Spotted something out of date? Email support@lexdraft.ai and we will fix it.