Court of Appeal and ECJ beg to differ on legality of shared service arrangements: Brent LBC v Risk Management Partners (the LAML case) and Commission v Germany

On 9 June 2009, the Court of Appeal handed down its judgment in Brent LBC v Risk Management Partners, upholding the insurance provider's claim for damages for breach of the procurement rules.

The court confirmed the first instance ruling that in awarding the insurance services contract directly to the London Authorities Mutual (LAML) without a call for competition, Brent LBC had infringed the rules.

On the same date, the European Court of Justice ruled in Commission v Germany. This judgment indicates a more flexible approach.

Both rulings are significant for public bodies seeking to enter into shared service arrangements without a tender process in reliance on the "in-house exemption". The Brent case is also the latest to clarify the rules on how quickly procurement challenges must be brought.

Read Wragge & Co's expert analysis on the public procurement issues raised by these cases.