Guide to Procurement Law 2017

About this Guide

This is the fourth edition of a guide explaining the application of EU and national procurement law to the procurement of works, services and supplies, in Ireland. This edition has been commissioned by the Construction Industry Federation (CIF), for use by its members. Publication is timely, given the recent implementation of the new EU Directives on Public Contracts, Utilities and Concessions, into Irish law. This Guide is more comprehensive than previous editions, covering the rules applying to procurement by both public and utilities sectors, the new rules applying to concession contracts and certain sectoral procurement rules notably in the transport, security & defence sectors.

The Guide throughout, highlights the important changes to procurement law introduced by the new rules. It is set out in 9 Chapters. Chapter 1 provides a background to the new rules, as well as a general overview of the main changes introduced. Chapters 2 – 7 examine the important question of scope, and the procedural rules applicable to the different stages of the process, including advertisement, selection and award. The new Concessions Directive, its scope and the “lighter” regime it establishes is discussed in Chapter 8. The systems of formal and informal remedies available to contractors in cases where they suspect breaches of procurement law are set out in Chapter 9. Contractors need to pay particular attention to the strict conditions that apply to accessing legal remedies under Irish law.

The Guide should not be read as a legal interpretation of the new rules. In drafting, we have aimed to provide a working interpretation of the rules which accords with the wording of the individual laws, guidance issued by the European Commission and judgements of the Court of Justice and national courts. As we are in the early days of working with the new laws, we can anticipate that our understanding of some aspects of those laws will evolve with time. For this reason, it is planned to update the Guide when necessary to include new developments in legislation, official guidance and case law. Readers are therefore encouraged to refer to the online version of this Guide which will include the most up-to-date information.

Barbara Linehan,
Solicitor

Tom Parlon
Director General
Construction Industry Federation

Acknowledgements

This Guide is written by Barbara Linehan. The Author would like to acknowledge the invaluable editorial input of Martin Lang Director CIF into the drafting of this Guide, the support and assistance of Alison Irving in the completion of the Guide, the contribution of Claudio Romanini (European Commission) in explaining certain aspects of the new Directives, as well as the support of law firm Maples and Calder.

Index

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