Government to procure litigation support worth £5m for pursuit of companies it claims are avoiding responsibility to pay to fix unsafe buildings

The Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has given notice of its plans to procure specialist litigation support for its Recovery Strategy Unit (RSU), which has been set up to “pursue those who seek to obfuscate their responsibility to pay to fix unsafe buildings and make them safe”.

The Department said it was anticipated that the procurement would result in the setting up of a framework agreement consisting of up to seven suppliers.

In a prior information notice DLUHC said: “In April 2022, the Building Safety Act was passed, providing a range of new powers to hold to account those responsible for unsafe buildings. To this end the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities established the Recovery Strategy Unit (RSU) to pursue those who seek to obfuscate their responsibility to pay to fix unsafe buildings and make them safe.

“The appointed Suppliers to this Framework Agreement will support the use of these new and untested powers to spearhead some of the first government action against actors across the built environment. This is a high-profile Government priority; the RSU reports directly to Secretary of State and the issue of building remediation receives considerable press coverage on a national scale.”

The Department said it wanted to work with “innovative and experienced litigators, with a strong track record of advising on successful litigation in relation to commercial, property and construction matters”.

It added: “The actors we are pursuing are significant, both in terms of their resources and reputation. We also expect that some cases will have tax compliance and commercial law elements and we’d expect successful suppliers to advise on all legal avenues of redress.

“The successful firms will be working on a key priority for the Department and for No.10 and will have the opportunity to use a range of new powers to hold high profile actors to account and deliver justice for leaseholders. The outcome of the RSU’s action will significantly impact construction litigation in this country, providing case law and establishing precedent of powerful new legal remedies.”

The estimated date of publication of the contract notice is 24 April 2023.