Framework Contract for the Provision of Legal Services to the Welsh Government and Certain Welsh Gov

Descriptions

The purpose of this tender exercise is to appoint a number of individual firms, each operating under a Framework Agreement, to provide legal services. The Framework Agreement will also be available for use by some (but not all) of the Welsh Government’s Sponsored Bodies (“WGSB”s), Further details of the particular bodies will be provided in the Invitation to Tender document. The public bodies participating in this framework have offices throughout Wales.The framework will constitute a number of subject area packages and an overarching panel. Applicants are invited to apply for all, individual, or any combination of, subject area packages. All successful firms will be appointed to the panel. It is anticipated that a maximum of 10 firms will be appointed in total. The requirement is for the panel as a whole to provide a range of advisory, transactional and litigation services, though it is not a requirement that any one individual firm be able to provide them all. Firms appointed will be expected to provide services throughout Wales.The subject area packages within the framework are:1. Property – advice and services relating to the acquisition, disposal and leasing of property, and property financing structures all, where appropriate, in a public law context.2. Commercial – advice and services relating to commercial contracts, joint ventures , sales and purchases and funding arrangements, corporate matters, corporate finance, insolvency all, where appropriate, in a public law context.3. Employment – provision of contentious and non-contentious advice and services including contracts of employment, industrial relations, tribunals, tax and pensions, all, where appropriate, in a public law context.4. Litigation – litigation related to the exercise of functions, land ownership and use, highways, contractual disputes, personal injury, debt recovery, negligence and breach of duty. Public law litigation, judicial review, other work within the Administrative Court and tribunals. 5. Environment – specialist advice to the participating environmental WGSBs including advice on relevant legislation and constitutional matters. The description of work within each subject area package is indicative only and is not exhaustive.Work will be allocated either to those firms appointed to advise on the relevant subject area packages or put out to the overarching panel in accordance with criteria set by the Welsh Government. The firms appointed to the overarching panel may also be used to provide legal advice or services which do not fall into any of the subject area packages. As this will be a Framework Agreement there is no guarantee that any firm appointed to the framework will be instructed or provided with a particular volume of work.The Welsh Government and other public bodies included in the Framework reserve the right to appoint alternative suppliers if they consider that specialist advice is required which cannot be provided by any of the successful firms for whatever reason, when there is considered to be a lack of competition, or for any other reason they consider appropriate.The Welsh Government, on behalf of the Welsh Ministers, will be conducting this procurement exercise through the etenderwales portal https://etenderwales.bravosolution.co.uk Tender documents and other information must be downloaded from and returned through this portal. If you require any further assistance the BravoSolution helpdesk is available on:Email: help@bravosolution.co.uk Phone: 0800 368 4850/ Fax: 020 7060 0480Full information in accessing the portal is found in Section IV. Administrative Information.PLEASE NOTEThe portal is configured to conduct the procurement exercise in english only. If you wish to submit a response in Welsh please contact the named contact point in this document immediately.