After the procurement

Once the procurement has been finalised, the contract has been signed and the contractual standstill period has expired – is everything clear? Yes, at least as far as procurement rules are concerned.

As a starting point, procurement rules do not apply to the contract between the public authority and the supplier; instead, ‘ordinary’ civil law rules apply. At this stage, the most important thing is that the contract is performed as planned and agreed; however, the parties may have different views on this.

Contract monitoring etc.

The public authority may carry out contract monitoring and, to varying degrees, require the supplier to take various actions, such as answering questions, submitting documentation and supporting evidence, etc. to demonstrate proper fulfilment of the contract.

During the contract period, it may also be necessary to make various changes to the contract. This may include changing suppliers, placing additional orders or changing prices. The procurement rules contain provisions that regulate the situations in which this is permitted.

NORMA has extensive experience of dealing with different types of situations and issues that may arise during the period of validity of a procured contract. With the business in focus, we always provide pragmatic and useful advice, which in the best possible way creates the conditions for continued good cooperation in the tendered contract.

Disputes over contracts and damages etc.

Unfortunately, in some cases, disputes cannot be avoided, however much the parties may want to. When there is a dispute about a procured contract, it is necessary to have specialised knowledge of the procurement rules and understand the implications for the court process.

At NORMA, our team in Commercial dispute resolution also works with litigation and dispute issues in several different matters, such as assessing the conditions for court proceedings and acting as counsel in disputes.

It is not uncommon for the procured contract to be the subject of a dispute, which may concern the application of the contract, breach of contract and damages, etc.

With NORMA’s collective knowledge and experience in both disputes/litigation and public procurement, we can provide complete and first-class advice in all disputes that arise around procured contracts and provide clear, concrete and useful advice from the first meeting to the end of the process.