Yseult Marique

Public–Private Partnerships and the Law

This timely book examines the legal regulation of Public–Private Partnerships (PPPs) and provides a systematic overview of PPPs and their functions. It covers both the contractual relationships between public and private actors and the relationships between PPPs and third parties, such as end-users.

Freedom of information in France: Law and Practice

In France, a legislation on freedom of information (FOI) granted every person the right to obtain communication of documents held by an administration within the framework of its public service mission, regardless of their form or medium, in 1978. This marked a stark break away from a tradition of administrative secrecy and sought to improve the relations between the French State and its citizens.

Cooperation and competition in complex construction projects: Implementation of EU procurement rules in England and Belgium

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show that technical complexity in construction projects is intensified by complexity in public decision making. Public authorities need to build on the conflicting imperatives of fostering cooperation with their (potential) contractors and following strict procurement regulations to enhance competition.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses a comparative analysis of the English and Belgian legal systems. The comparison is based on traditional legal analysis of the primary sources, cases and their scholarly comments. It is supplemented, when appropriate, by project management concepts.Findings – The analysis in the paper suggests that awarding authorities do not always resolve the conflict between cooperation and competition for themselves. There is a range of alternative techniques embedded in the legal system.Practical implications – The paper suggests that developing tools for successful construction processes requires perspectives building in both law and...

English Judges: Little Mice in the Big Business of Corruption?

The civil consequences of corruption in international commercial contracts are poorly mapped under English private law, despite the economic importance of English law in governing international contracts. England seeks to balance protecting the main economic transaction (eg the main infrastructure project, the main provision of goods) benefitting the principal (eg a foreign public authority) with harsh treatment of the corrupting transaction itself, ie the transaction between the bribe-giver and the bribe-taker. The starting point in English law for addressing corruption is the relationship between the principal and its agent. Even though the Bribery Act 2010 moved away from this principal/agent relationship to address corruption from a criminal law perspective, the UK Supreme Court relied on this principal/agent relationship in FHR European Ventures LLP v Cedar Capital Partners LLC, where it held that the agent held the product of corruption in trust for his principal. The question remains whether such financial adjustments developed by the judges are a sufficient punishment or deterrence against corruption. They may offer a clear and simple answer signalling clearly that English judges disapprove of corruption as a serious evil. However, as a matter of public policy, a range of other techniques may need to be developed to discourage corruption in a more systematic way among all the parties involved, the bribe-giver included.