CWC24150 - Strategic Legal Partner

Appoint a suitably qualified and experienced law firm to act as its Strategic Legal Partner, providing external legal services on a call off basis where additional capacity and/or specialist expertise cannot reasonably be met by the Council's in house Legal Services team.

The arrangement is intended to complement, not replace, internal provision and will be used selectively to support the delivery of the Council's statutory functions, major projects, complex or high risk matters, and time critical work where internal capacity is constrained.

The appointed firm will be expected to work collaboratively with in house teams, operating within agreed governance, reporting and instruction arrangements. The Council will remain the lead on all matters and retain oversight and control of all external legal instruction across the organisation, acting as the gatekeeper for the commissioning of external legal support.