Find a TenderAwarded
Published 29 Jan 2025, 13:42 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

Legal Services · UK public procurement notice

Official notice

Authority: APUC Ltd (Public body)

Framework agreement8 lotsServicesOpen procedureSME suitable
Framework ceiling (notional)£12,000,000total for 8 lots · framework ceiling, not attributable revenue · 1 value update
Submissions closed 21 Oct 2025awarded 16 Dec 2025
Lots 8see the lot list below

What is being bought8 lots · detail below

Published requirement description

APUC were seeking Contractor(s) for the provision of specialist Legal Services for the further and higher education sector in Scotland.

APUC are looking to obtain, through this tendering process, price normalisation for all institutions regardless of size and demand.

  • Recurrence: August 2029

CPV: Legal advisory and information services · Legal advisory and representation services · Legal advisory services · Legal documentation and certification services · Legal expenses insurance services · Legal insurance and all-risk insurance services · Legal representation services · Legal services

How this framework works

From the published notice
Places
up to 48 suppliers · 7 bids on the busiest of 8 lots (0.1 per place) · 7 appointed

Lots and requirements (8)Procurement structure

8 lots · no lot values published · same evaluation weights on every lot
Lot #1Commercial-BusinessAwardedRenewal

Provision of legal services in Commercial-Business specialism including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Procurement & other contract law
  • Commercial corporate governance
  • Joint ventures
  • Banking, finance, insurance and taxation
  • Company formation
  • Corporate finance
  • Bond Issuance, mergers and acquisitions
  • Competition law
  • Freedom of Information
  • General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
  • Intellectual Property
  • Technology Law including Software Licensing Agreements
  • Software Licensing Agreements
  • Debt collection
  • Commercial and consumer debt collection Additional information: 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
Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed
Lot #2Property & EstatesAwardedRenewal

Provision of legal services in Property & Estates specialism including but not limited to the following:

  • Conveyancing
  • Landlord and tenant law
  • General estate management issues
  • Planning law
  • Major building projects
  • Student accommodation
  • Construction and Engineering
  • Environmental law
  • CONTEST
  • Martyn’s Law Additional information: 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.
Delivery: Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements.Variant bids: not allowed
Lot #3People / HR MattersAwardedRenewal

Provision of legal services in People / HR Matters specialism including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Employment relations
  • Employment contracts and policies
  • UK Visas & Immigration matters
  • Equality and diversity
  • Organisational change
  • Health and safety
  • TUPE
  • Pension law and advice
  • Student support and regulatory matters
  • Data protection
  • Freedom of Information
  • Fair Working Practices
  • Employment dispute resolution including tribunals Additional information: 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.
Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed
Lot #4CharityAwardedRenewal

Provision of legal services in Charity specialism including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Charity law
  • Fundraising and sponsorship
  • Constitutional and parliamentary issues (including bulls, charters and statutes)
  • Charity corporate governance. Additional information: 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.
Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed
Lot #5InternationalAwardedRenewal

Provision of legal services in International specialism including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Public International Law
  • Law of the Sea
  • International Criminal Law
  • International ventures
  • International Humanitarian Law
  • International Human Rights Law
  • Refugee Law
  • Private International Law
  • Supranational Law Additional information: 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.
Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed
Lot #6Dispute Resolution (Including Student Matters)AwardedRenewal

Provision of dispute resolution legal services including student matters including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Resolution of disputes including litigation, adjudication, mediation and arbitration
  • Commercial and property related litigation and dispute resolution
  • Health and Safety and Regulatory matters, including the defence of regulatory investigations and prosecutions
  • Personal injury litigation, including stress and disease claims
  • Reputation management, including defamation
  • Judicial review
  • Briefing and recommendation of Counsel
  • Student academic appeals, student complaints, student disciplinary matters, failure to educate, fitness to practise issues and other student procedures and processes
  • Data protection in a staff and student matters context
  • Representation on behalf of the University at appeal / complaint / disciplinary hearings as required
  • Student contract issues including the procedures for the making of offers and for enrolment
  • Compliance with the requirements of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and other regulatory bodies in relation to the student contract for tuition (including fee issues)
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
  • Ensuring compliance with relevant regulatory requirements in Scotland and provide full assistance with any investigations undertaken by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). Additional information: 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.
Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed
Lot #7Education Law and ResearchAwardedRenewal

Provision of legal services in Education and Research specialism including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Academic research (including grants) & research originated knowledge transfer.
  • Compliance with broader regulatory frameworks, including Material Asset Transfers, the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS), and international protocols such as the Nagoya Protocol. Additional information: 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
Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed
Lot #8One-Stop-ShopAwardedRenewal

Institutions shall be entitled to appoint a single firm to advise and/or represent on all matters of law, which may include some or all of the specialist areas in technical expertise described above. This may involve the provision of a full legal advice service to an Institution or may involve working in partnership with an in-house legal resource, providing supplementary legal resource or expertise from time to time as caseload requires across more than one of the specialisms. Additional information: 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

Delivery: Scotland · Scotland
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirementsVariant bids: not allowed

What it takes to win
i

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 more
How bids were scored · same split on all 8 lots
Quality: 60%Price: 40%
Published sub-criteria (2)
  • Technical: 60%
  • price: 40%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Technical: 60%
  • Price: 40%
Conditions of participation3
  • Suitability

    Providers must be accredited by the professional body relevant to the delivery of these services (Law Society of Scotland).

  • Condition of participation
    no text published
    Minimum: Please refer to Question 4B.5 of the SPD and Economic and Financial Standing section of the Contract Notice. Tenderers must confirm that they can provide the following supporting evidence prior to award: Professional Risk Indemnity: 3,000,000.00 GBP Employer's (Compulsory) Liabil…
  • Technical & professional ability

    Bidders must be a member of the Law Society of Scotland. Please see SPD Question 4A.1a

Staff
Names and qualifications of delivery staff must be submitted
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 40 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 4 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
  • “Legal Services” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, up to 48 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
Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement
Yes · August 2029
First published
29 Jan 2025, 13:42 GMT
Last source update
12 Mar 2026, 16:06 GMT
Award evaluation window
21 Oct 2025 – …
Authority reference
PFB1047 AP
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-022512
Classification (CPV)
Legal advisory and information servicesLegal advisory and representation servicesLegal advisory servicesLegal documentation and certification servicesLegal expenses insurance servicesLegal insurance and all-risk insurance servicesLegal representation servicesLegal services
Delivery area
Scotland (UKM)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-04d700 Find a Tender
Contract terms
Electronic trading
e-invoicing allowed · electronic ordering · electronic payment
Performance terms

Submission of Management Information following commencement of the Framework Agreement, the Contractor will provide a performance report to the Authority on a quarterly basis to include spend by Institution under the Framework Agreement for the reporting period. Contractors must provide the information on a quarterly basis, within 10 working days following the start of each quarter. Data must be uploaded to the website: ucsp.ac.uk ↗.

Publisher note: Economic operators could have been excluded from this competition if they had been in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015. Suppliers were asked to confirm if they will be in a position to complete (at point of award) the following: Appendix A Form of Tender Appendix B Freedom of Information Appendix D APUC Sustain Supply Chain Code of Conduct (SC Ref:825746)

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: Public Contracts Scotland · Who buys & how to bid on PCS
Supplier login requiredLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free single registration for Scotland; PCS-Tender (Jaggaer) for full bidding
Appointment period ends
21 Oct 2025, 14:00 BST
Submission channel
{"electronicSubmission"}
Accepted languages
en
Bid validity
180 days from the deadline
Bids opened
21 Oct 2025, 15:00 BST
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

Timeline

20 Jun 2025 → 12 Mar 2026 · 4 dates
  1. Next notice expected
    20 Jun 2025, 00:00 BST
  2. Admission / appointment period ends370 days ago · period end, not a bid countdown
    21 Oct 2025, 14:00 BST
  3. Bids opened370 days ago
    21 Oct 2025, 15:00 BST
  4. Notice published228 days ago
    12 Mar 2026, 16:06 GMT

Notice history

5 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 17 Sept 2025
  1. Published value updated to £12,000,000
    17 Sept 2025, 12:01 BST
    was £4,000,000
  2. Status changed to active
    17 Sept 2025, 12:01 BST
  3. Procurement method changed
    17 Sept 2025, 12:01 BST
  4. Deadline published: 21 Oct 2025, 14:00 BST
    17 Sept 2025, 12:01 BST
  5. Status changed to complete
    12 Mar 2026, 16:06 GMT

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast
Suppliers appointed 7admitted to the panel · see the list ↓
Bids received 72 from SMEs · busiest of 8 lots
Contracts signed 8latest 16 Dec 2025

8 suppliers are admitted to this framework without individual award values or dates, see the supplier list below.

Contracts

All 4 of these contracts carry the same published figure, £1,200,000, the framework's maximum for the whole notice, not each contract's own value. They are not eleven separate sums.

  • Commercial-Business

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    £1,500,000
    Status
    active
  • Property & Estates

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    £1,500,000
    Status
    active
  • People / HR Matters

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    £1,500,000
    Status
    active
  • Charity

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    ceiling above
    Status
    active
  • International

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    ceiling above
    Status
    active
  • Dispute Resolution (Including Student Matters)

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    ceiling above
    Status
    active
  • Education Law and Research

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    ceiling above
    Status
    active
  • One-Stop-Shop

    Signed
    16 Dec 2025
    Value
    £2,700,000
    Status
    active

Bid statistics published by the authority

LotBidsSMEVCSEValid bid range
1 · Commercial-Business6bids · 6 electronic · 6 from abroad2——
2 · Property & Estates5bids · 5 electronic · 5 from abroad2——
3 · People / HR Matters5bids · 5 electronic · 5 from abroad2——
4 · Charity4bids · 4 electronic · 4 from abroad2——
5 · International5bids · 5 electronic · 5 from abroad2——
6 · Dispute Resolution (Including Student Matters)7bids · 7 electronic · 7 from abroad2——
7 · Education Law and Research4bids · 4 electronic · 4 from abroad1——
8 · One-Stop-Shop5bids · 5 electronic · 5 from abroad2——

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

2 public bodies on the notice

APUC Limited

Contracting authorityPublic bodyBody governed by public lawEducation Unit 27, Stirling Business Centre, Wellgreen, Stirling, Scotland, FK8 2DZContact name, email, phone Published organisation website ↗

Other public bodies

  • European UnionFunder

Dispute resolution & review bodies

  • Sheriff Court HouseReview body Stirling

Framework contractors & participating bidders

7 commercial parties on the notice
  • Anderson Strathern LLPFramework contractor 58 Morrison Street, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH3 8BPContact phone
  • Brodies LLPFramework contractor 58 Morrison Street, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH3 8BPContact phone
  • DWF LLPFramework contractor No 2 Lochrin Square, Fountainbridge, Edinburgh, UK, EH3 9QAContact phone
  • Morton Fraser MacRoberts LLPFramework contractor 9 Haymarket Square, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH3 8RYContact phone
  • Pinsent Masons LLpFramework contractor 18-22 Melville Street, Edinburgh, UK, EH3 7NSContact phone
  • TLT LLPFramework contractor One Redcliff Street, Bristol, UK, BS1 6TPContact phone
  • Thorntons Law LLPFramework contractor 33 Yeaman Shore, Dundee, Scotland, DD1 4BJContact phone

Official documents & specifications

Official links; attachments are not copied

No document links were published on the notice.