The Law of Public Contracting (LAWS90151)

Contemporary governments use contracts as a key tool of governance. Outsourcing of public services is commonplace. But should we regulate the use of such tools by means of public administrative law, or through private law, or a mixture of both?  Is there an accountability deficit? What are the advantages and risks of contracting out, and how can and should the law respond?

Professor Janet McLean brings both public law and private law perspectives to bear on the subject of public contracting drawing on Australian, New Zealand and United Kingdom examples.

Principal topics include:

• The distinctive normative bases of private and private law and their implications for government contracts
• The decision to outsource
• The reach of judicial review, freedom of information and human rights law, and financial reporting rules, into the realm of contract law
• Implied terms, procedural requirements and interpretative methods in contract law
• Procurement rules and other internal government guidance
• Public private financing initiatives and other examples of government contracting
• The auditor-general and the role of private auditors.