Official UK procurement notice
CT2945 Legal Services Framework
Authority: The City of Edinburgh Council (Local council)·Consortium: 19 public authorities
What is being bought7 lots · detail below
Published requirement descriptionThe City of Edinburgh Council’s in-house legal team provides advice and support on all legal matters relating to the Council. The team instructs external firms where it has insufficient capacity or where particular specialist advice is required. The Council wishes to appoint a number of suitably qualified and experienced law firms (“Service Providers”) to a six lot Framework Agreement to carry out legal services for the City of Edinburgh Council and other named Scottish local authorities. The type and volume of advice required may fluctuate during the period of the Contract.
- Recurrence: Within 4 years
CPV: Legal services
How this framework works
From the published notice- Places
- up to 23 suppliers · 9 bids on the busiest of 6 lots (0.4 per place) · 8 appointed
Lots and requirements (7)Procurement structure
7 lots · no lot values published · evaluation weights differ by lotLot #1CommercialAwarded
Lot 1: Commercial
The Council expects the following services from Service Providers to include but is not limited to: Public law, Corporate law, Commercial contracts, Finance law and financial services law, Intellectual property, IT, Procurement, FOISA, Data protection, RIPSA and RIPA, Commercial and Pensions.
Lot #2Property and PlanningAwarded
Lot 2: Property and Planning
The Council expects the following services from Service Providers to include but is not limited to: Property law, Construction law, Environmental law, Planning law, Transportation law and Litigation support for all of the above.
Lot #3LitigationAwarded
Lot 3: Litigation
The Council expects the following services from Service Providers to include but is not limited to: Childcare law, Education law, Litigation, Licensing law.
Lot #4EmploymentAwarded
Lot 4: Employment Law
The Council expects the following services from Service Providers to include but is not limited to: Providing legal advice in relation to local government employment law matters, Providing support in the furtherance of positive employee relations, Providing legal advice in relation to litigated employment matters, Providing front-line expert support to complex high risk HR case management, Providing advice and support on the development of employment policies and practices, Providing advice on major projects in relation to employment matters and Advocacy (including solicitor-advocacy if possible).
Lot #5Major Projects and InvestigationsAwarded
Lot 5: Major Projects and Investigations
The Council expects the following services from Service Providers to include but is not limited to:
The provision of strategic and multi-disciplinary advice in respect of major, high value and/or complex matters requiring expertise in excess of that which would ordinarily fall within Lots 1 to 4 of the Contract; and
The provision of complex multi-disciplinary investigatory advice in respect of major, high value and/ or complex matters requiring investigatory expertise in excess of that which would ordinarily fall within Lots 1 to 4 of the Contract.
Lot #6Debt RecoveryAwarded
Lot 6: Debt Recovery
The Council expects the following services from Service Providers to include but is not limited to the three categories of debt to be recovered: (1) council tax & non-domestic rates (NDR), (2) sundry debt, including not limited to parking penalty charges and statutory repairs debt and (3) heritage court - rent arrears.
Lot #7Residential PropertyPlanned
Lot 7: Residential Property
What it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Lots publish different evaluation splits; there is no single procedure weighting.
| Lot | Quality | Price | Split |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Commercial | 60% | 40% | |
| 2 · Property and Planning | 60% | 40% | |
| 3 · Litigation | 60% | 40% | |
| 4 · Employment | 60% | 40% | |
| 5 · Major Projects and Investigations | 70% | 30% | |
| 6 · Debt Recovery | 60% | 40% |
- Suitability
This Section refers to Section A of Part IV of SPD (Scotland) and covers question 4A2b: Bidders must be registered with, and regulated by, the Law Society of Scotland.
- Economic & financial standing
Part III: Section A, B, C & D Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 [for above threshold)/8 and 9 of the Procurement (Scotland) Regulations 2016 (below threshold).
Part IV: Selection criteria B: Economic and financial standing – Question 4B.1 - Tenderers are required to have a minimum “general” annual turnover for the last two financial years. For lot 1 - GBP 368,300; for lot 2 - GBP 656,625; for lot 3 - GBP 474,800; for lot 4 - GBP 238,500; for lot 5 - GBP 681,500; and for lot 6 - GBP 425,000. Where a Tenderer does not have an annual turnover of this value, the Council may exclude the Tenderer from the competition or may apply discretion seeking supporting evidence to determine the Tenderer’s suitability to proceed in the competition.
Part IV: Selection criteria B: Economic and financial standing – Question 4B.4 Tenderers will be required provide the following information in response to 4B.4:
For lots 1, 2, 3 5 and 6:
Current ratio for Current Year: >1.15
Current ratio for Prior Year: >1.15
For lot 4:
Current ratio for Current Year: >1.10
Current ratio for Prior Year: >1.10
The formula for calculating a Tenderer’s current ratio is current assets divided by current liabilities. The acceptable range for each financial ratio is greater than the respective ratios above. Where a Tenderer’s current ratio is less than the acceptable value, the Cou…
Minimum: This Section refers to Section B of Part IV of the SPD (Scotland) and covers question 4B5. Minimum level(s) of standards required: Tenderers are required to hold, or commit to obtaining prior to the commencement of any subsequently awarded contract, the types and levels of insura… - Technical & professional ability
Reference to the relevant law, regulation or administrative provision:
Bidders must be registered with, and regulated by, the Law Society of Scotland.
- Staff
- Names and qualifications of delivery staff must be submitted
- Price carries 30–40 points depending on the lot; most lots put it at 40 points.
- “CT2945 Legal Services Framework” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, up to 23 suppliers, not a single contract.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record · publisher note attached- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Framework agreement
- Who may use this agreement
- Not stated in the notice; call-off rights may be limited to the establishing authority
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Yes · Within 4 years
- First published
- 22 Feb 2023, 15:08 GMT
- Last source update
- 24 Oct 2023, 11:11 BST
- Award evaluation window
- 26 Jun 2023 – …
- Authority reference
CT2945- FTS notice number
2023/S 000-031310- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-03a78eFind a Tender
- Electronic trading
- e-invoicing allowed · electronic ordering · electronic payment
- Review procedure
An economic operator that suffers or risks suffering loss or damage attributable to a breach of duty under Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 may bring proceedings in the Sheriff Court or Court of Session. . A claim for an ineffectiveness order must be made within 30 days of the Contract Award Notice being published in the Find a Tender Service /OJEU or within 30 days of the date those who expressed an interest in or otherwise bid for the contract were informed of the conclusion of the contract or in any other case within 6 months from the date on which the contract was entered into.
Publisher note: CONTRACT SPECIFIC MANDATORY CRITERIA Part IV: Selection criteria - C: Technical and Professional Ability – Prompt Payment – Question 4C.4 - It is a mandatory requirement of this Contract that a prompt payment clause is present in all Contracts used in the delivery of the requirements. This ensures payment of sub-contractors at all stages of the supply chain within 30 days and includes an obligation to provide a point of contact for sub-contractors to refer to in the case of payment difficulties. This will require active monitoring of payment performance as well as the provision of evidence and reports to the Council on request or as contractually scheduled. Bidders should confirm that this condition will be met within the response to this question. Part IV: Selection criteria - C: Technical and Professional Ability – Climate Change – Question 4C.7 - It is a mandatory requirement that Tendering Organisations will be required to provide evidence that their organisation has taken steps to build their awareness of the climate change emergency and how they will respond. Tendering organisations will be required to complete the Climate Change Plan Template, including planned projects and actions to reduce the bidder’s carbon emissions. This does not need to contain calculated carbon emissions. Part IV: Selection criteria - D: Quality Assurance Schemes & Environmental Management – Question 4D.1 - It is a mandatory requirement that Tendering Organisations with more than 5 employees have in place a Health & Safety Policy which is approved at a senior level within the Organisation and is reviewed regularly. Bidders should confirm that this condition has been met within the response to this question. Where a Bidder does not have a Health & Safety Policy and is required to do so, the Council may exclude the Bidder from the competition. (SC Ref:748282)
How it was run
Official noticeTender documents are also served through a separate tool: https://www.publictendersscotland.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/esop/pts-host/public/pts/web/login.html ↗
- Appointment period ends
- 26 Jun 2023, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- {"electronicSubmission"}
- Accepted languages
- en
- Bid validity
- 180 days from the deadline
- Bids opened
- 26 Jun 2023, 12:00 BST
Timeline
17 Apr 2023 → 24 Oct 2023 · 4 dates- Next notice expected17 Apr 2023, 00:00 BST
- Admission / appointment period endsperiod end, not a bid countdown26 Jun 2023, 12:00 BST
- Bids opened26 Jun 2023, 12:00 BST
- Notice published24 Oct 2023, 11:11 BST
Notice history
5 events · 4 releases on Find a Tender · since 25 May 2023- Published value published: £22,000,00025 May 2023, 08:55 BST
- Status changed to active25 May 2023, 08:55 BST
- Procurement method changed25 May 2023, 08:55 BST
- Deadline published: 26 Jun 2023, 12:00 BST25 May 2023, 08:55 BST
- Status changed to complete24 Oct 2023, 11:11 BST
Published amendments (1)
Amendments to Contract notice For FTS/OJEU, Please be advised that an additional 4 Participating Authorities require to be added under Section I.1, they are: Angus Council - Angus House, Silvie Way, 4 Orchardbank Business Park, Forfar, Angus DD8 1AE; North Lanarkshire Council - Civic Centre, Windmillhill Street, Motherwell ML1 1AB; South Lanarkshire Council - Almada Street, Hamilton, ML3 0AA; Renf…
Routine re-releases (4)
- 2023-02: 1 release · 22 Feb 2023
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast6 suppliers are admitted to this framework without individual award values or dates, see the supplier list below.
Contracts
Commercial
- Signed
- 11 Oct 2023
- Value
- £4,843,000
- Status
- active
Property and Planning
- Signed
- 11 Oct 2023
- Value
- £5,993,000
- Status
- active
Litigation
- Signed
- 11 Oct 2023
- Value
- £5,908,000
- Status
- active
Employment
- Signed
- 11 Oct 2023
- Value
- £2,628,000
- Status
- active
Major Projects and Investigations
- Signed
- 11 Oct 2023
- Value
- £5,852,000
- Status
- active
Debt Recovery
- Signed
- 11 Oct 2023
- Value
- £1,090,000
- Status
- active
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Lot | Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Commercial | 7bids · 7 electronic · 7 from abroad | 4 | — | — |
| 2 · Property and Planning | 7bids · 7 electronic · 7 from abroad | 3 | — | — |
| 3 · Litigation | 6bids · 6 electronic · 6 from abroad | 3 | — | — |
| 4 · Employment | 7bids · 7 electronic · 7 from abroad | 4 | — | — |
| 5 · Major Projects and Investigations | 9bids · 9 electronic · 9 from abroad | 3 | — | — |
| 6 · Debt Recovery | 3bids · 3 electronic · 3 from abroad | 1 | — | — |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
19 public bodies on the noticeConsortium members and other public bodies
- Aberdeen City CouncilContracting authority
- Aberdeenshire CouncilContracting authority
- Angus CouncilContracting authority
- Dumfries and Galloway CouncilContracting authority
- East Dunbartonshire CouncilContracting authority
- East Lothian CouncilContracting authority
- Falkirk CouncilContracting authority
- Inverclyde CouncilContracting authority
- Midlothian CouncilContracting authority
- North Lanarkshire CouncilContracting authority
- Orkney Islands CouncilContracting authority
- Renfrewshire CouncilContracting authority
- Shetland Islands CouncilContracting authority
- South Ayrshire CouncilContracting authority
- South Lanarkshire CouncilContracting authority
- Stirling CouncilContracting authority
- The Highland CouncilContracting authority
- West Lothian CouncilContracting authority
Framework contractors & participating bidders
8 commercial parties on the notice- Anderson Strathern LLPFramework contractor
- BrodiesFramework contractor
- CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLPFramework contractor
- Clyde & Co (Scotland) LLPFramework contractor
- DWF LLPFramework contractor
- Harper Macleod LLPFramework contractor
- Morton FraserFramework contractor
- Shepherd and Wedderburn LLPFramework contractor
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Technical selection criteria