Simon Harris TD, Minister of State with special responsibility for Public Procurement, today (27th Oct 2015) announced that the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) has launched a public procurement competition to establish a number of multi-supplier framework agreements for the provision of legal services to all public sector bodies (excluding central government departments).

“This first step of adopting a national aggregated approach to legal services for the public sector is to be welcomed. The approach of breaking up large contracts and frameworks into smaller lots actively encourages SME participation in procurement. This is particularly important given an estimated value of approximately €100 million over the next four years. This approach aims to match public sector needs to the capacity and capability of the market place.”

The Framework Agreement is divided into eleven lots, with each lot representing a specific legal practice area. The lotting strategy has been designed to allow firms with specific expertise in practice areas to compete on a lot by lot basis.

In advance of publishing this tender, the OGP undertook extensive market engagement with the industry. This pre-tender engagement helped to shape the structure and inform the scope of the competition. Law firms of all sizes were encouraged to share their experiences of previous public sector procurement competitions, and their views on barriers to competition and participation. The OGP received feedback from a broad range of firms with an interest in delivering legal services to the public sector.

Further details are available on www.etenders.gov.ie and the closing date for receipt of Tenders is 23rd November 2015.

ENDS