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ARTICLE · 29 NOVEMBER 2010

Ireland Found to have Breached TFEU Obligations

SJ Berwin LLP
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The Court of Justice of the European Union ('ECJ') has upheld, in part, an action brought by the European Commission ('Commission') alleging that Ireland has breached its obligations in relation to the procurement of translation services.

European UnionAntitrust/Competition Law
SJ Berwin'S EU & Competition Team
SJ Berwin'S EU & Competition Team

The Court of Justice of the European Union ('ECJ') has upheld, in part, an action brought by the European Commission ('Commission') alleging that Ireland has breached its obligations in relation to the procurement of translation services. 

The case arose from a complaint from an unsuccessful tenderer.  Having failed to receive a satisfactory response from Ireland the Commission referred the matter to the ECJ.  The Commission was concerned in particular that (i) the weightings of the award criteria for the tender were altered after an initial review of the tenders; and (ii) the weightings of the award criteria were not attributed until after the closing date for the bids.

The translation services are "Part B" services, meaning that they are not subject to the full application of Directive 2004/18.  It was noted however that, following the publication of a notice in the OJEU, twelve companies had submitted requests to participate in the award procedure, and that

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