Last Thursday the High Court of Northern Ireland set aside a
framework agreement for work worth up to £800m. The agreement
was concluded in April 2008 between the Department of Finance and
Personnel and five contractors.
The contractor who came sixth in the tender competition for
places on the framework agreement successfully challenged the
process. The Department breached public procurement rules that
apply throughout the EU by failing to disclose the full
sub-criteria by which tenders were ultimately assessed. Click here
for the September judgment.
In cases such as these, the aggrieved tenderer's usual
remedy is damages based on its loss of a chance of successfully
tendering, had the rules been followed, and later making a profit
(plus its abortive tender costs). In fact the rules make damages
the only remedy where the invalidly tendered contract has been
entered into between the contracting authority and the successful
tenderers. However, the court held that
