Bird & Bird has extensive expertise and experience in outsourcing transactions, and we genuinely consider ourselves to be among the market leaders in this complex area.
This was recognised by The Lawyer magazine, which rated Bird & Bird as one of only three top tier firms for advising customers on outsourcing work.
We advise our clients on all types of outsourcing transactions from ‘traditional’ IT and telecoms outsourcings to innovative deals involving the outsourcing of business processes and back office functions. Examples of our recent experience include: IT and communications network and services outsourcings, cash management outsourcings, commercial print outsourcings, billing system outsourcings, local government e-commerce projects and payroll outsourcings. We have particular expertise in multi-jurisdictional outsourcing transactions, using teams of lawyers drawn from our network of international offices.
Our outsourcing practice offers comprehensive and commercially focused advice in all relevant areas, including:
- procurement models
- offshore outsourcing to India, China and elsewhere
- tax efficient structures
- use of joint ventures and special purpose vehicles
- in-sourcing of previously outsourced functions
- re-tendering
- regulatory issues specific to particular sectors, such as communications and financial services
- financing arrangements
- outsourcing by government, for example under the UK Public Finance Initiative (PFI) and Public/Private Partnership (PPP) schemes
As well as handling the initial contract negotiation process legally, we regularly advise on legal aspects of contract management, change control, contract renegotiations, dispute handling, and on clients’ options on contract termination.
In all, over 30 Bird & Bird partners are regularly engaged in this type of work, acting for both suppliers and for customers, in the public and private sector.