Serco Ltd v Secretary of State for Defence [2019] EWHC 549 (TCC) (27 February 2019)

Serco Ltd v Secretary of State for Defence [2019] EWHC 549 (TCC) (27 February 2019)

The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this procurement as the contract notice was published before their commencement; therefore, any claim under PCR 2015 must be struck out. Serco's pre-action correspondence, considering the information provided by MoD, was sufficient to comply with the notice requirements under the Defence Regulations, and claims relating to RoRs not specifically numbered in the correspondence should not be struck out.

Citation
[2019] EWHC 549 (TCC)
Parties
Claimant/respondent: Serco Ltd; Defendant/applicant: Secretary of State for Defence
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
27 February 2019
Procedural Posture
Procurement Strike Out/summary Judgment Application / First Hearing on Strike Out/summary Judgment Application
Outcome
Claim under Public Contracts Regulations 2015 struck out; application to strike out claims relating to sufficiency of notice under Defence Regulations dismissed.
Legal Topics
Strike Out Applications, Summary Judgment, Sufficiency of Notice, Applicable Procurement Regulations
Public Procurement Administrative Law Strike Out Applications Summary Judgment Sufficiency of Notice Applicable Procurement Regulations

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Parties

Serco Ltd

Claimant/respondent

Secretary of State for Defence

Defendant/applicant

Procedural Posture

Procurement Strike Out/summary Judgment Application / First Hearing on Strike Out/summary Judgment Application

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 apply to the procurement
  2. 2 Whether the claim under PCR 2015 should be struck out
  3. 3 Whether Serco's pre-action correspondence provided sufficient notice of alleged breaches under the Defence Regulations

Ratio Decidendi

The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this procurement as the contract notice was published before their commencement; therefore, any claim under PCR 2015 must be struck out. Serco's pre-action correspondence, considering the information provided by MoD, was sufficient to comply with the notice requirements under the Defence Regulations, and claims relating to RoRs not specifically numbered in the correspondence should not be struck out.

Court Disposition

Claim under Public Contracts Regulations 2015 struck out; application to strike out claims relating to sufficiency of notice under Defence Regulations dismissed.

Orders

  • Strike out of claim relying on Public Contracts Regulations 2015
  • Claims relating to RoRs not specifically numbered in pre-action correspondence allowed to proceed