A host of commercial law firms secured a coveted place this week on the government's new Catalist scheme for buying legal services.


The framework agreements underpinning Catalist are expected to be worth £240 million in fees over the four years of the contract. They cover eight categories of legal services provision: IT, telecoms and e-commerce; property and estates; construction; employment and pensions; corporate and finance; intellectual property; full commercial; and major projects.



Catalist, which was developed by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) and the Treasury Solicitor's Department, allows public sector bodies to access a range of services from approved providers, and replaces the L-CAT scheme.



Derek Rothwell, procurement director at the OGC's buying solutions arm, said: 'L-CAT saved customers over £5 million in 2006/07. I am confident that we will secure even greater savings combined with better accessibility.'



The Treasury Solicitor, Paul Jenkins, added: 'I anticipate a rapid move away from any pre-existing departmental and ad hoc arrangements to a consistent and widespread use of the new framework as the default approach to selecting and appointing external legal services providers.'



The 18 firms on the key full commercial panel are: Eversheds, Field Fisher Waterhouse, Burges Salmon, DLA Piper, Pinsent Masons, Michelmores, Veale Wasbrough, Sharpe Pritchard, Beachcroft, Mills & Reeve, Simmons & Simmons, Bevan Brittan, Wragge & Co, Norton Rose, Denton Wilde Sapte, Nabarro Nathanson, Bird & Bird and Dickinson Dees.



A number of top City firms - including Linklaters, Allen & Overy, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Slaughter and May and Herbert Smith - made it on to the major projects panel.



Altogether, some 48 firms were successful in a selection process that took ten months.



Philip Hoult