In an increasingly complex, fast-moving and dynamic society, governments are routinely and consistently expected to accomplish more and more with less and less. DeCotiis's unique, multifaceted Public Procurement and Contracting practice provides the expert knowledge, diverse experience and innovative approaches that can help government entities meet this challenge.
The practice group, which works with both public and private clients, advises clients in every phase of the procurement process, from the initial Request for Information to the final negotiations. Our approach is hands-on, practical and informed. Our role is to bring whatever expertise is required to bear on a procurement issue to insure a satisfactory result.
Our attorneys and professional staff have extensive experience with government at all levels - Federal, state, county and municipal. We have assisted governments through a myriad of challenges, including complex public/private partnerships, public/public teamings and independent authority initiatives. In any given project, DeCotiis attorneys will handle the development and implementation of Request for Proposals (RFP), Request for Qualifications (RFQ) and other competitive bidding processes; contract negotiation and contract monitoring; negotiation and documentation of public financing transactions; and presentation to governing bodies. In recent years, some of our major projects have included privatizations of public facilities, public/private road constructions and development projects, and service procurements for local utilities authorities.
Facilitating a government project is rarely a straightforward process. It often requires expertise in a number of different legal disciplines, and requires practitioners to work very closely together, often under significant constraints and time pressures. The scope of the different DeCotiis practice groups makes this easy and extremely productive. It saves our clients time and money, while streamlining the process.
Our attorneys frequently call upon the expertise of our tax, real estate and public finance groups. Our partners' breadth and depth of knowledge is an important benefit for our clients. In addition to completing projects more quickly and less expensively, our thinking reflects a broad perspective that draws on a variety of approaches. This enables us to consistently arrive at better, more innovative solutions, and on occasion, to suggest or structure creative solutions to complete a project previously thought to be impossible.
The DeCotiis Public Procurement and Contracting practice is particularly benefited by the large number of firm partners who have held high-level positions in various New Jersey government agencies, entities and authorities. This degree of hands-on experience makes us unique among New Jersey firms. As an example, many of our attorneys have drafted legislation, or have firsthand knowledge of the operation of involved regulatory agencies, along with the ability to anticipate possible obstacles. This unmatched expertise enables us to effectively advise clients on every aspect of a project. For example, we can tell a water company client seeking to partner with a municipality that certain nonlegal issues, such as presentations at public hearings, are of enormous importance.
It is this kind of firsthand, in-depth knowledge that makes the DeCotiis Public Procurement practice group one of the most renowned and preeminent in New Jersey. The reason is simple - we help our clients get things done.
