When Tender Codes Become Binding - Kennedys Legal Paper
Architects and others need to be wary of incorporating advisory codes into private tendering procedures.
On 11 December 2006, Sir Liam McCollum in the Northern Ireland High Court ruled in the J&A Developments case that, once incorporated in the tender documentation, the principles of the National Joint Consultative Committee (NJCC) code of procedure for single stage selective tendering become contractually binding, even though the code is, on the face of it, merely advisory in character. The case therefore enlarges the rights of tendering contractors substantially. Earlier case law had restricted these rights severely, arguably confining them to public procurement agreements only.
