Because of the coronavirus threat this program was rescheduled to March 2022.
Conflicts in Public Contract Administration: Shared Lessons
King’s College, London – George Washington University Law School Annual Transatlantic Symposium on Public Procurement Law – King’s College, London – March 16, 2020 – 10:00 to 20:00
Until now, procurement reform internationally has centered on contract formation, because of the difficult political, legal and economic issues that surround the award of any public contract. For the most part, contract administration and its inevitable disputes (and fraud) have been ignored. This symposium seeks to remedy that, by bringing together judges, lawyers, academics and experts from both sides of the Atlantic, to share lessons learned and ways forward for a sound approach to contract administration.
Register here (and please note if you will stay for the evening event).
Introductions (10-10:15)
Michael Bowsher QC, King’s College, London & Monckton Chambers
Panel I (10:15-11:30)
How Poor Procurement Affects Failed Contract Performance
- Christopher Yukins, George Washington University (moderator)
- Paul Lalonde, Dentons, Toronto
- Jane Jenkins, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, London
- Francois Lichere, Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3
- Benedetta Audia, UNOPS / GWU Law
Panel II (11:30-12:30)
The Limited Impact of EU Public Procurement Law on Contract Administration
- Andrea Sundstrand, Stockholm University (moderator)
- Roland Stein, BLOMSTEIN, Berlin
- Professor Gabriella Racca, University of Turin
- Irena Georgieva, PPG Lawyers, Sofia
- Caroline Nicholas, UNCITRAL (invited)
Resources
Gabriella M. Racca & Roberto Cavallo Perin, Material Changes in Contract Management as Symptoms of Corruption: A Comparison Between EU and U.S., in Integrity and Efficiency in Sustainable Public Contracts: Balancing Corruption Concerns in Public Procurement Internationally (G. Racca & C. Yukins eds.) (Bruylant 2014).
Lunch (12:30-13:30)
Panel III (13:30-14:30)
U.S. Experience: Linking Contract Award to Performance Through Standardized Clauses and Dispute Resolution — and Fraud
- Steven Schooner, George Washington University Law School (moderator)
- Hon. Jeri Kaylene Somers, Chair, U.S. Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, Washington DC
- John Pachter, Smith Pachter, McLean VA
- Craig Holman, Arnold & Porter, Washington DC
- Marcia Madsen, Mayer Brown, Washington DC
Resources
Hon. Jeri Kaylene Somers, The Board of Contract Appeals: A Historical Perspective, 60 Am. U. L. Rev. 745 (2011)
Granston Memorandum – U.S. Department of Justice Guidance on Dismissing Fraud Actions (2018)
Steven L. Schooner, What Next? A Heuristic Approach to Revitalizing the Contract Disputes Act of 1978, 28 Public Contract Law Journal 635 (1999), https://ssrn.com/abstract=1000712
Collin Swan, Government Contracts and the Federal Circuit: A History of Judicial Remedies Against the Sovereign, 8 J. Fed. Cir. Historical Soc. (2014), https://ssrn.com/abstract=2750119
Panel IV (14:30-15:30)
Improving Contract Performance Through Better Procurement: Diverse National Experiences
- Michael Bowsher QC, King’s College, London & Monckton Chambers (moderator)
- Professor David Mosey, Center for Construction Law & Management, King’s College, London
- Vera Eiró, Linklaters, Lisbon
- Paul Khoury, Wiley Rein, Washington D.C.
- Kate Gough, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, London
- Marta Andhov, Assistant Professor, University of Copenhagen
- Chris White, Director of the Institute for Industrial Strategy, King’s College London
Resources
David Mosey, Framework Alliance Contract FAC-1 Briefing Paper
Tea (15:30-16:00)
Panel V (16:00-17:00)
Judges & Arbitrators Panel: European Approach to Resolution of Disputes in Public Contracts
- Michael Bowsher QC, King’s College, London & Monckton Chambers, FCIArb Chartered Arbitrator (moderator)
- Helena Rosén Andersson, Supreme Administrative Court, Sweden
- Christopher Vajda, Judge of the Court of Justice of the European Union 2012-2020
- Judge Katja Hoegh, Chair, Østre Landsret (High Court of Eastern Denmark), Copenhagen
Drinks (17:00-18:00)
Book talk: procurement across borders (18:00-20:00)
For those able to stay on, co-editors Gabriella Racca and Christopher Yukins and several of their co-authors will host an evening of light refreshments and discussion of their recently published book, Joint Public Procurement and Innovation: Lessons Across Borders. The book, with leading authors from both sides of the Atlantic, addresses a range of cutting-edge issues in public procurement, including:
- Joint purchasing across borders — US and EU models
- Innovative procurement techniques emerging in Europe and internationally
- Special challenges in procuring for “smart cities”
- OECD’s role in the revised “MAPS” standards for assessing public procurement systems
- Electronic marketplaces for public procurement.
Professor Chris Jansen (VU Amsterdam) and co-author Professor Patricia Valcárcel Fernández (University of Vigo) (invited) will discuss their ongoing study of contract administration law — another important project assessing procurement law across borders.
With generous support from:
