Two of Bristol’s largest law firms have secured places on a new government legal panel responsible for billions of pounds of work in areas ranging from real estate to procurement and litigation.
Burges Salmon and TLT have been appointed to the Crown Commercial Service’s (CCS) Legal Services Panel along with 10 other major national and international firms. 
The panel replaces the previous General Legal Advice Services and Finance and Complex Legal Advice Service frameworks.
Firms on the panel were chosen for their ability to support the public sector with legal advice for central government, covering the 23 most commonly required areas of law, including major projects, procurement, litigation, real estate and other advisory services
Both TLT and Burges Salmon have been appointed to Lot 1 of the panel, which provides general legal advice and services.
Lot 1 firms will be able to bid to work with all UK central government ministerial and non-ministerial departments (excluding regulators), their executive agencies and the successors of these bodies through Crown Commercial Service’s (CCS) Legal Services Panel.
Burges Salmon, which employs 800 people in its Bristol HQ and London and Edinburgh offices, has been advising central government for more than 25 years and the tender process involved a significant team comprising lawyers and business services individuals from across the firm.
The team was led by the firm’s head of public sector John Houlden, along with Keith Beattie, Laura Wisdom, Matthew Ramus, Jennifer Liddicoat, Chris Chesterman, Chris Jackson and Richard Binns.
John Houlden, pictured, said: “We are delighted with this appointment. It demonstrates our strong public sector credentials established over a number of years and across a broad range of sectors.
“We look forward to continuing to work with colleagues at the Government Legal Department, alongside our existing central government clients such as the Ministry of Defence, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the Department of Health and Social Care and Ministry of Justice, among others.”
TLT, which employs more than 130 partners and employs around 1,150 people across its seven offices, said its inclusion demonstrates its capability across more than 30 specialisms as well as technology and matter management systems, its ability to co-partner with the GLD and its extensive knowledge and experience of working with a range of stakeholders to deliver significant and complex projects.
The firm’s presentation team was led by Bill Hull, partner and co-head of government & public sector, with partners Kuldip Dhanoya and Gareth Oldale and legal director Nathalia Perera, supported by Caroline Ramsay, Emily Holdsworth, Clare Welch and Duncan Moss.
Bill Hull, pictured, said: “We are delighted to have been re-appointed to this prestigious legal panel. Working with government lawyers over the last four years, and particularly in response to the Covid-19 challenges they have faced, has been an incredible experience.
“It is great to have the opportunity to continue to support the core legal teams with expertise, additional capacity and our specialism and also to co-partner to find best in practice ways of working.”
In the last year TLT has been appointed to the UK government’s post-Brexit trade law panel and instructed to advise on three critical trade negotiations, re-appointed to the National Legal Services Framework in an expanded role and appointed to Sport England’s new sports and arts legal services panel.
Crown Commercial Service is an Executive Agency of the Cabinet Office, supporting the public sector to achieve maximum commercial value when procuring common goods and services.
In 2020/21, it helped the public sector achieve commercial benefits equal to £2.04bn.
