Public sector

The legal and regulatory regime under which public bodies operate is far-reaching and rapidly evolving. It imposes constraints and restrictions not found in the private sector. The current cuts to budgets demand ever greater efficiencies by public bodies. At the same time, their decisions and actions are being increasingly scrutinised by those who are affected, whether they be members of the public, disappointed service providers or employees.

We help our public sector clients to navigate their way through the plethora of issues which they face on a daily basis, from Freedom of Information Act requests to IT contracts, Public Private Partnerships to public procurement and outsourcing agreements, and from maintenance and facilities management to equality and diversity policies.

We help our clients to develop robust internal and external facing protocols and procedures which explicitly address their legal and regulatory obligations in order to minimise the risk of costly and time-consuming challenges. If a challenge is pursued, we assist our clients in defending judicial review court proceedings.

We help public bodies operating in many different sectors but we have a particular specialism in infrastructure and transport projects, especially light rail systems, and have advised a number of UK local authorities on such projects.