Blog
Exploring the Complexities of Contract Law, Arbitration, and Public Procurement: Insights from the Third PurpLE Research Seminar
The third PurpLE research seminar, held on the 5th and 6th of September 2024, brought together 23 legal scholars from 15 European universities to discuss the dynamic intersections of EU Public Procurement and Contract Law. The event provided a platform for PurpLE project Anthology authors to present their preliminary research findings, exchange ideas, and gain insights through mutual feedback. The Anthology, a comprehensive book, will publish the results of the project’s research.
Restricting freedom of contract- The EU foreign subsidies regulation and its consequences for public procurement
PurpLE team members Associate Professor Marta Andhov (PI) and senior researcher Michał Kania published a paper in the Journal of Public Procurement titled “Restricting freedom of contract”, addressing the EU foreign subsidies regulation and its consequences for public...
Panel on Trust and Cooperation at the global Revolution Conference 2024
PurpLE team members Associate Professor Marta Andhov and Senior Researcher Michał Kania presented research on “The Doctrine of Culpa in Contrahendo in Public Procurement” during this year’s Global Revolution Conference at the University of Nottingham. The Global Revolution conferences have been held since 1997. The conferences attract public procurement representatives from academia and practice from all over the world. The views presented at the conference shape the academic discussion for the following years. Key presentations also shape policy trends in the area of public procurement, which are taken into account by international organisations and national governments.
Ever-growing Restrictions on Whom Public Buyers Can Contract with – Contemporary Developments in the EU Public Procurement
This blog examines the ever-growing catalogue of restrictions on who can participate in the EU public procurement market and, consequently, with whom the public buyer (the contracting authority) cannot contract. We start by showcasing how freedom of contracting – one of the fundamental principles of contract law – is limited in the context of public procurement (section 1). Next, we look outside of EU Public Procurement Directives to sources of additional restrictions. These represent a clear reaction to contemporary challenges and include Sanctions Against Russia (section 2), Foreign Subsidies Regulation and International Procurement Instrument (section 3), Deforestation-Free Products Regulation and the Proposal for an Anti-Greenwashing Directive (section 4). Finally, we provide some conclusions.
Case C-598/19 Conacee – Reserved Contracts and Additional National Criteria Beyond Those Laid Down in Article 20(1) of Directive 2014/24/EU on Public Procurement
In this blog post, the authors analyse Case C-598/19 Conacee, which concerns Article 20(1) Directive 2014/24/EU on reserved contracts and the regulation foreseen in the Fourth Additional Provision and the Fourteenth Final Provision of Spanish Law on Public Sector Contracts, setting additional requirements at the national level for the economic operator to compete for reserved contracts. [1] The Court of Justice of the European Union (further: CJEU) ruled in this case that Member States are able to set additional requirements under national legislation beyond those laid down in Article 20(1) Directive 2014/24/EU with respect to economic operators that may compete for reserved contracts. It also clarified the conditions under which Member States may exclude economic operators from the reserved contracts.
The blog post first examines relevant EU law provisions, facts of the case and the question submitted to the CJEU. Next, analyses of reserved contracts under Article 20(1) of Directive 2014/24/EU and the judgement in Conacee are carried out. The latter is investigated with particular attention to methods of interpreting the legal text and distinguishing between non-profit and profit special employment centres. The last section concludes the blog post.
PURPLE’s senior researcher Michal Kania took part in the “Public procurement in times of crisis: national experiences” conference
PurpLE Senior researcher Michal Kania took part in the “Public procurement in times of crisis: national experiences” conference organised by the Public procurement law research group at the University of Tartu, School of Law on 26 January 2023. Michal’s presentation focused on the so-called “hardship clause” in the context of public procurement law in the context of the Coronavirus pandemic and war in Ukraine.