Scottish Police Authority appoints TLT to legal panel

TLT has been appointed to the Scottish Police Authority’s (SPA) new legal services framework, to deliver procurement services to the SPA and Police Scotland.

The appointment follows a competitive tender process for a multi-supplier framework agreement to provide cost-effective, responsive and high-quality legal services. 

TLT’s successful bid for the procurement lot reflects the firm’s strength in the blue light sector in particular and the public sector more broadly, as well as its unique offering in procurement.

In July 2019, TLT appointed renowned consultant Iain Steel and partner Caroline Ramsay to its UK procurement team. Together with TLT's existing full legal service offering, the appointments created a one-stop shop for public procurement, from strategy and design through to governance, regulatory affairs and assurance including managing the end-to-end tender process and supplier relationships. 

As part of the legal services framework, TLT will advise on procurement procedures, contracts and legislative compliance as well as provide training to SPA and Police Scotland’s in-house legal team.

TLT’s core team will be led by partners John-Paul Sheridan and Caroline Ramsay and chief procurement services officer, Iain Steel. They will be supported by Kuldip Dhanoya, Vanessa Cooper, Carroll Dodd, Maeve Torrance and Natalie Gorse.

Caroline Ramsay, partner at TLT, says: “Our appointment to the SPA’s legal panel is testament to the strength of our blue light sector team, and the expansion of our procurement services in recent years. 

“In-house legal teams are facing increasing pressure to deliver more with less, and this will only intensify as we start to see the longer-term impact of the global pandemic. The use of innovative processes and technologies is key to enabling authorities to tackle these challenges head on. 

“We are delighted to be appointed to the panel and look forward to forging a strong partnership with the SPA.”  

TLT has experienced rapid growth in Scotland in the last year, with high profile appointments including Caroline Ramsay (procurement and state aid, and international trade); Iain Steel (procurement); Ayla Skene (international trade); Stacey Cassidy (construction); Michael Spence (real estate); Kirsty Smith (corporate); and Catharine MacDonald (banking and finance).