Legal Project Management

Planning and managing the legal aspects of your project

Most projects include a range of milestones and challenges.

From the earliest stages of your project through to completion, the NWL Legal team provides planning expertise to identify when you are likely to require legal input and the level of input required at each stage.

We have extensive experience of supporting clients, including local authorities and FE colleges, through the legal challenges of a range of projects, including in real estate.

We offer a fixed fee service to can produce a clear plan of the types of advice you may need and at what stages you should be engaging a Solicitor. This will help keep your project to its timetable and your legal spend within budget. You can also utilise our expertise to provide the legal services you need at each stage in the process.

The following is a sample project plan covering a range of scenarios

INDICATIVE TIMELINE OF LEGAL ADVICE REQUIREMENTS AND RISK ASSESSMENT FOR [XXXX] PROJECT

This document’s purpose is to provide a high level, indicative legal project plan to overlay on the overall project plan, which shows where legal involvement will be necessary and to what extent, through the process. This is provided on the basis of information provided to us by [client] and does not constitute legal advice of itself. Some of the stages below could be occurring concurrently. The risk levels assessed below are on the basis that an expert project manager is engaged to manage all elements of the project.

PM Timeline

Corporate Governance

  • Ensuring appropriate decision making and sign off
  • Securing legal compliance
  • Securing constitutional compliance

Loan Agreement

  • Taking instructions on project
  • Reviewing loan agreement in accordance with instructions
  • Negotiating to agreed form
  • Completing agreement
  • Arranging for compliant constitutional sign off

Planning Permission

  • Advice at planning committee
  • Advice on reports
  • Advice to planning officers

 Compulsory Purchase Orders

  • Securing funding for purchase and compensation
  • Pre-action notices
  • Advice on procedure
  • Governance advice and securing necessary approvals
  • Advice on planning permission requirements
  • Reports (as necessary)
  • Negotiation of orders
  • Advice and/or representation at enquiry and funding enquiry (if required)
  • Completion of purchase

Land Disposals

  • Pre-contract enquiries
  • Negotiation and preparation of contract documentation
  • Completion of contract and transfer
  • Post-completion registration requirements (?)

 Pre-procurement

  • Advising on most appropriate procurement method
  • Advising on form of contract
  • Liaising with Procurement team to prepare contract documentation, invitation to tender, specification, evaluation criteria, etc

Procurement Procedure *Subject to procurement process selected*

  • Assisting with management of procurement
  • Dealing with legal queries relating to tender questions
  • Assisting with evaluation of tenders

Award/Contract formation

  • Finalising and completing contracts using tender submissions
  • Corresponding with and arranging for completion of contracts with successful bidder

Post-procurement/challenges

  • Alcatel letters
  • Dealing with complaints/challenges (now received in some form as a matter of course)
  • Corresponding with successful bidder

Contract Management *indeterminate period, subject to events*

  • Ad hoc legal support required for contract management issues as they arise