Councils in Hull and Lincolnshire launch £4m tender for legal services

Three councils in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire have launched a tender for legal services worth in the region of £4m over four years.

The three members of the consortium – North Lincolnshire Borough Council, North East Lincolnshire Council and Kingston-upon-Hull City Council – have also opened the framework agreement to other participants, up to a maximum of 30.

The framework is intended to “enable swift call-off of specialist legal advice for a number of complex projects”, with the provision of additional advice and support as required.

The contract is likely to have two lots. Part A covers:

• procurement/corporate/commercial/contracts/joint ventures
• other major projects
• planning/highways/CPO/regeneration
• judicial review/governance
• human rights including freedom of information and data protection, and
• commercial litigation.

Part B covers:

• social care (incorporating childcare, adults and education)
• debt recovery
• civil litigation
• criminal litigation and licensing
• conveyancing
• employment, and
• housing.

Under the tender, framework services under the second lot are likely to be awarded at a later date.

The councils have also left open the possibility of mini competitions. Members of the framework will have an exclusive right to participate in the competition for call offs for work exceeding £10,000 for Part A and £5,000 for Part B.