Procurement law and state aid

Tenders

The European and Dutch tendering rules form a complex system of legal precedents before the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ). Consequently, tenders regularly lead to various legal questions:

• What procedures must governments follow for awarding contracts for works, supplies, and services?

• What does non-compliance with those procedures mean for contracts awarded by the government and how can non-compliance be contested?

• May the government pursue secondary objectives such as sustainability and the environment or fair trade?

Our lawyers regularly advise and litigate in tenders, both for governments and participants during the tendering procedure and after award of contract.

State aid

State aid measures which distort competition by favouring certain undertakings and thereby adversely affecting trade between Member States of the European Union are, in principle, incompatible with the internal market and, therefore, prohibited. There are, however, exceptions. The European Commission is the only body competent to assess whether aid measures are compatible with the European market. For this reason, planned aid measures must usually be reported to the European Commission. Awaiting the pending assessment by the European Commission of the notified aid measure, the government is not allowed to implement that measure. Our lawyers particularly focus on aid measures in relation to land exploitation and area development.

Recent work

Advising and successfully representing a drinking water company in preliminary relief proceedings on a European tender for building materials;

Advising and representing a security company in a series of preliminary relief and appeal proceedings on tenders for security services regarding public transport and infrastructure;

Advising on whether the municipal purchase of property above market value would lead to unlawful state aid. This included the various options available to the municipality to prevent state aid, including recourse to the de minimis regulation, among other things.

Advising and representing a major printer supplier in preliminary relief proceedings against the State of the Netherlands concerning a tender for supplies.

Our lawyers are happy to help you find your way around procurement law and state aid rules. If you want to know more, feel free to contact us.

What others say about us

• Legal 500 2023 Construction (Tier 3): ‘VDF is a go-to-firm for construction, permitting and planning. Dedicated team with relevant expertise and capability.’ ‘I recommend Marc Houweling, leading the practice and Brim Tonino for construction.’ ‘The team pairs a thorough knowledge of construction law and all of its possibilities with a practical attitude and incentive to solve problems practically and in an amicable way. But let there be no mistake, if necessary, they are a tough opponent in litigation with a solid success rate.’

• Legal 500 2023 Real Estate (Tier 5): 'The team has excellent knowledge and is very responsive.' ‘Knowledgeable, reliable and efficient.’ ‘Van der Feltz is a good business partner.' 'Their service is more than adequate and always in time.’