Procurement process is always a challenging task according to Mark von Wietersheim
News Article: German Public Procurement Law Undergoing Significant Reforms
The Forum Vergabe, a German organisation dedicated to promoting awarding law, has been discussing the current challenges and developments in public tender awarding law. The driving force behind the formation of the Forum Vergabe was the "Badenweiler Talks," a meeting point for the "awarding scene" in the Black Forest health resort since 1990. Mark von Wietersheim, the managing director of the Forum Vergabe, has been leading these discussions since 2009.
The key focus of these discussions centers on speeding up, simplifying, and digitalizing public procurement while balancing legal protection and competition fairness. The current reforms aim to reduce legal protection mechanisms for bidders in procurement review processes, abolish the automatic suspension of procurement procedures during appeals, and strengthen provisions to enhance subcontracting opportunities for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and promote public-public partnerships.
However, these changes raise concerns about compliance with rule-of-law standards and risk undermining bidders' rights to primary judicial protection. For instance, new legislation proposes allowing review bodies to waive contract invalidity in cases of unlawful de facto procurements under compelling public interest by imposing alternatives like financial penalties or contract shortening.
Another significant development is the explicit integration of environmental, social, and innovation criteria in procurement market research, aligning with Germany’s sustainability and innovation policies. The reforms also respond to EU Court rulings, such as restricting equal treatment principles to allow exclusion of certain third-country bidders for strategic autonomy and supply chain security reasons.
The Forum Vergabe, which has around 450 members predominantly from Germany but also from Austria and Switzerland, consists of municipal and state contracting authorities, federal ministries, contractors, lawyers, consultants, and law firms. The organisation hosts specialist events, such as the "Forum Award Discussions," which will focus on reforms of procurement law at the national and European levels this September in Fulda.
Mark von Wietersheim, who has been following the developments of German awarding law for decades, played a significant role in the formulation of the VOB (Procurement and Contracting Ordinance for Construction Services) while at Deutsche Bahn. He was also responsible for the topic of construction awarding law at Deutsche Bahn from 2000 to an unspecified date.
The major GWB reform occurred in 1998, and it included a separate fourth part that regulated the awarding law comprehensively in paragraphs for the first time. The Forum Award events have supported legislation with their inputs, such as during the last reform of the procurement law in 2015. Mark von Wietersheim believes that public tenders are awarded better today than in the past.
For more information about the Forum Award and its upcoming events, contact Wolfgang Leja, who serves as a contact person for the organisation.
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