Our global team provides cross-border and domestic advice to clients on public procurement and competitive tendering rules, in a contentious and non-contentious context.
Public procurement law is an increasingly important field of regulation. Prescriptive laws regulate the way in which public authorities and utilities award valuable contracts for works, supplies and services in many jurisdictions. Furthermore, the relevant regulations in the UK may soon be reformed, as a result of Brexit.
We have a leading public procurement practice. Our multi-disciplinary practice includes lawyers from our corporate, disputes, competition and trade and real estate teams. This guarantees that we can deal efficiently with any procurement issue, no matter how technical or complex.
Our clients include government departments, public bodies and utilities, as well as suppliers and contractors which bid for and perform public and utility contracts. We have extensive experience and an intuitive understanding of the machinery and process of government and the public-private commercial interface, gained over many decades, which we deploy for the benefit of both our public and private sector clients.
Our broad experience means that we are well-placed to advise across the full spectrum of procurement law issues. Much of our work involves advice on non-contentious matters, such as the procurement of major projects and contracts in a range of sectors including aviation, defence, energy, infrastructure, pharma, real estate, transport and information technology. We advise our clients on all stages of the procurement process, from initial design through to contract award and performance.
Procurement litigation is on the rise and the potential sanctions for non-compliance are severe. We draw on our extensive experience of litigation in order to help our clients to avoid procurement disputes as far as possible. However, where a tender process is contested, we have the expertise to work with our clients to successfully challenge the award decision or to defend the procuring authority.
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Recent Experience
High Speed Two (HS2) Limited
Advising on various procurement procedures for the major project to construct the High Speed 2 railway line in England, including the award processes for the contracts for enabling works, main civil works, station design services and rolling stock, and in court proceedings to defend a substantial claim brought by a disappointed bidder relating to the rolling stock procurement
STAGECOACH
Acting for Stagecoach as a claimant in proceedings before the Technology and Construction Court arising out of the highly-publicised decisions of the Secretary of State for Transport to disqualify Stagecoach from the East Midlands rail franchise competition and the South Eastern rail franchise competition
EDF and NNB
Advising on the EU procurement and State aid aspects of EDF's plans to build four new nuclear power plants in the United Kingdom, including Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C
Greater London Authority
Advising on the procurement of the multi-party framework agreement, known as London Development Panel 2, for selecting developers to undertake major housing projects in London
Ministry of Defence
Advising on several large IT procurement projects
Transport for London / London Underground Ltd
Advising on procurement issues relating to Railway Control Systems, mobile telecommunications, network upgrade works (e.g. Northern Line Extension) and a number of over-station developments (including Paddington Square and Southwark)
Accolades
Band 2 for Public Procurement
Insights and updates
