Administrative Policy

1. The purpose of this policy is to establish the terms and conditions of the contracts entered into by the Conseil de la magistrature (the Conseil), with a profit-seeking private enterprise, a general partnership, a limited partnership, a joint venture, a sole proprietorship or an enterprise whose employees are mostly disabled persons.
2. In accordance with all intergovernmental agreements applicable to the Conseil, this policy aims at promoting:
   1. transparency in contractual processes
   2. upright, equitable treatment of suppliers
   3. the opportunity for qualified suppliers to take part in the Conseil's call for tenders
   4. the implementation of quality assurance systems, the scope of which covers the supply of goods and the performance of services required by the Conseil
   5. performance reporting based on the accountability of the directors of public organizations and on the proper use of public funds
3. This policy applies to the following contracts entered into by the Conseil:
   1. supply contracts, including contracts for purchase or rental of movables, which may include charges for installing, operating or maintaining the property
   2. service contracts, which include those of a technical nature or those involving professional services, contracts of enterprise, referred to in the Civil Code of Québec, contracts for development and contracts of affreightment, damage insurance contracts and transportation contracts
4. The policy doesn't apply to construction contracts, as the Conseil uses the services of the Société immobilière du Québec, if need be.

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SECTION 1 – CONTRACTS SUBJECT TO THE PUBLIC CALL FOR TENDERS PROCEDURE

1. The Conseil has recourse to the public call for tenders procedure for entering into the following contracts:
   1. any supply contract whose amount is equal to or greater than the lower limit provided for in any applicable intergovernmental contract, i.e., $25,000
   2. any service contract whose amount is equal to or greater than the lower limit provided for in any applicable intergovernmental contract, i.e., $100,000
   For the purpose of determining the amount of the contract, the Conseil shall consider the resulting total financial commitment, taking into account the renewals that are provided for therein.
2. The public call for tenders is carried out by means of a notice announced in the electronic call for tenders system approved by the Government.

SECTION 2 – CONTRACTS THAT MAY BE CONCLUDED BY MUTUAL AGREEMENT

1. A contract whose amount is equal to or greater than the lower limit of the call for tenders provided for in article 5 may be concluded by mutual agreement in any of the following cases:
   1. when, due to an emergency, the safety and security of goods and people is at stake
   2. when only one single contracting party in particular can be selected, due to a guarantee, a property right or an exclusive right, such as a copyright or a right based on an exclusive licence or patent, or due to the artistic, heritage or museological value of the goods or service required
   3. when a supplier has a copyright or property right giving it a significant advantage over other potential suppliers and there is no possible competition, given the fact that it is the only supplier able to submit a tender under advantageous business  conditions
   4. when there is only one supplier having an establishment in Québec, or when an intergovernmental agreement is applicable, in Québec or within a territory covered by this agreement, which, following reliable, documented research, is the only one that can meet the specifications required and that has the necessary qualifications for carrying out the contract, or when there is no supplier meeting these requirements on the territory concerned
   5. when the goods to be bought have already been the subject of a rental contract and the payments are partially or totally credited to the purchase
   6. when it concerns a confidential or protected matter and it is reasonable to believe that its disclosure, within a public call for tenders, might compromise the nature thereof or prove detrimental to the Conseil's interests in any other way
   7. when it is a contract that concerns the acquisition of books or a subscription contract
   8. when it concerns a contract for legal, financial or banking services
   9. when it concerns a contract for services that relates to the hiring of an investigator, conciliator, negotiator or arbitrator in the field of labour relations, a person having to act as an expert witness before a tribunal, or a doctor or dentist with regard to a medical assessment in connection with their speciality
   10. when it is possible to show, considering the subject matter of the contract and in accordance with the principles set forth in article 2, that a call for tenders would not serve the public interest

SECTION 3 – CONTRACTS AMOUNTING TO LESS THAN THE LOWER LIMIT OF THE PUBLIC CALL FOR TENDERS

1. At the time of putting up for tender or awarding a contract amounting to less than the lower limits provided for in article 5, the Conseil shall evaluate the possibility:
   1. of proceeding by means of a public call for tenders or upon invitation
   2. of implementing, subject to any applicable intergovernmental agreement, measures favouring the acquisition of goods or services from competitors or contracting parties in Québec
   3. of carrying out a rotation among the suppliers it uses or resorting to new suppliers
   4. of setting up control provisions relating to the amount of any contract and any additional expense related thereto, and in particular, in the case of a contract by mutual agreement
   5. of equipping itself with a follow-up mechanism, making it possible to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the procedures used with regard to any contract amounting to less than the lower limit of the public call for tenders.

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1. The public call for tenders procedure shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
   
   Nevertheless, when the Conseil carries out a call for tenders to award a contract amounting to less than the lower limit for public calls for tender, the requirements may differ.

SECTION 1 – TENDER DOCUMENTS

1. A public call for tenders shall be made by means of a notice announced in the electronic call for tenders system.
   
   This notice shall form part of the tender documents and shall indicate:
   1. the identification of the Conseil
   2. the summary description of the goods or services required
   3. the nature and amount of the bid security required, if applicable
   4. the applicability or non-applicability of an intergovernmental agreement
   5. the place where the tender documents or information may be obtained
   6. the planned location as well as the date and time limits set for receiving and opening the bids; the bid response time may not be less than 15 days from the date that such notice is published
   7. the fact that the Conseil doesn't promise to accept any of the bids received
2. In its tender documents, the Conseil must provide:
   1. the description of needs and the terms of delivery or execution
   2. the qualifying conditions required of a supplier as well as the bid compliance conditions
   3. the list of documents or other papers required by the suppliers
   4. the terms and conditions of opening the bids
   5. when provision has been made for an evaluation of the quality of the bids, the evaluation rules, including the criteria selected and their respective weight
   6. the rule on awarding the contract, which includes, if need be, any and all terms and conditions with regard to calculations applicable to the award
   7. the contract to be signed
3. In order to be eligible to submit a tender, the supplier shall meet the following conditions:
   1. have the necessary qualifications, authorizations, permits, licences, registrations, certifications, accreditations and certificates
   2. have, in Québec or on a territory covered by an applicable intergovernmental agreement, an establishment where the supplier carries out its activities on a permanent basis, clearly identified in the supplier's name and accessible during regular office hours
   3. meet all other eligibility requirements provided for in the tender documents
   Notwithstanding sub-paragraph 2) of the first paragraph, when the competition is insufficient, the Conseil may make eligible any supplier that has an establishment on a territory not covered by an applicable intergovernmental agreement, provided that this is mentioned in the tender documents.
   
   Failure on the part of a supplier to comply with any of these conditions shall make that supplier ineligible.
4. The compliance conditions shall indicate the cases that will result in an automatic rejection of a bid, namely:
   1. non-compliance with the specified location, date and time limit set for receiving the bids
   2. a missing required document
   3. a missing required signature of an authorized person
   4. the price submitted either crossed out or corrected and not initialled
   5. a conditional or restrictive bid
   6. the submitted price and demonstration of the quality not presented separately, as required under article 22, if applicable
   7. failure to comply with all other compliance conditions marked on the tender documents as resulting in the automatic rejection of a bid
5. Provided that it is mentioned in the tender documents, the Conseil may reserve the option of refusing a supplier which, during the past two years prior to the bid opening date, has been subject to a dissatisfactory performance evaluation on the part of the Conseil, has failed to follow up on a bid or contract or has been subject to cancellation of a contract due to its failure to comply with the conditions thereof.
6. The Conseil may change its tender documents by sending an addenda to the suppliers concerned by the call for tenders.
   
   If the change may well have an impact on the prices, the addenda shall be sent at least 7 days prior to the deadline for receiving bids; if such deadline cannot be met, the deadline for receiving the bids shall be postponed by as many days as necessary to comply with this minimum time frame.

SECTION 2 – SUPPLY OR SERVICES CONTRACT OF A TECHNICAL NATURE

§ 1. Method of soliciting and opening bids

1. The Conseil shall solicit only one price to award a supply contract or a contract of services of a technical nature.
2. The Conseil shall publicly open the bids, in the presence of a witness, at the specified location, on the date and at the time stipulated in the tender documents.
   
   At the time of the public opening, the name of the suppliers as well as their total respective price shall be disclosed, subject to subsequent verifications.  

§ 2. Examination of bids and award of contract

1. The Conseil shall examine the bids received by checking the eligibility of the suppliers and the compliance of their bid.
   
   If it rejects a bid because the supplier isn't eligible or because such bid is non-compliant, it shall inform the supplier by mentioning the reason for such rejection, no later than 15 days after the contract has been awarded.
2. The Conseil shall award a supply contract or a contract of services of a technical nature to the supplier who has submitted the lowest price.
   
   Within the scope of a supply contract, the Conseil may, in determining the lowest price, take into account the impact costs related to such acquisition and thereby adjust the bid prices. Such an adjustment in prices shall, however, be based on quantifiable, measurable factors that are clearly identified in the tender documents.
3. In the event of a tie score in the ratings, following a call for tenders, the contract shall be awarded by means of a random draw.
4. The Conseil shall award the contract based on the needs described and the rules stipulated in the tender documents and according to the bid price.
   
   The Conseil may nevertheless negotiate the bid price, and the price marked on the contract may then be lower than the bid price when all the following conditions have been met:
   1. one single supplier has submitted a compliant bid
   2. the supplier has agreed to a new price
   3. it is the only change made to the conditions set forth in the tender documents or to the bid within this negotiation

SECTION 3 – CONTRACT OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

§ 1. Method of soliciting and opening bids

1. The Conseil shall evaluate the level of quality of a bid in order to award a contract of professional services; it shall then solicit a price, when required, and a demonstration of quality, based on predetermined evaluation criteria.
   
   The price and demonstration of quality shall be separately submitted so that the first paragraph of article 27 can be applied.
2. The provisions of the first paragraph of article 17 apply to the contract of professional services; moreover, at the time of the public opening of the bids, only the names of the suppliers shall be disclosed.

§ 2. Examination of bids and award of contract

1. The provisions of article 18 apply to contracts of professional services.
2. The Conseil shall evaluate the quality of the bids based on the level of quality, followed by the calculation of the quality-price ratio. It shall apply the conditions and terms of evaluation specified in Appendix 1 and shall award the contract to the supplier that has submitted the lowest adjusted price.
3. In order to award a contract, the Conseil may also proceed by means of a two-step public call for tenders.
   
   At the first step, the Conseil shall select the suppliers by solely soliciting a demonstration of quality. The tender documents shall indicate the number of suppliers that will be invited to take part in the second step.
   
   The selection committee shall evaluate the quality of a bid based on the terms and conditions specified in articles 1 to 7 of Appendix 1, and only the suppliers that have obtained the highest final rating shall be accepted.
   
   At the second step, the Conseil shallinvite the selected suppliers to submit a bid with only one price, or a demonstration of quality and a price, if need be.
   
   When only a price is required, articles 16 to 21 shall apply, and when the level of quality of the bid is evaluated, articles 22 to 25 and 27 to 28 shall apply.
4. The bids shall be evaluated by a selection committee set up by the Conseil for this purpose. The committee shall evaluate the quality, without knowing the price submitted by the supplier.
   
   The selection committee shall be made up of a secretary in charge of coordinating the activities thereof and of at least 3 members.
5. The provisions of articles 20 and 21 shall apply to the contract of professional services, provided that the condition set forth in sub-paragraph 1) of the second paragraph of article 21 has been met, i.e., that only one supplier has submitted an acceptable tender.
6. The Conseil shall inform each bidder of the results of the evaluation of quality of that bid, within 15 days following the award of the contract.
   
   The information sent to the bidder shall be as follows:
   1. confirmation of acceptance or non-acceptance of the bidder's bid
   2. the bidder's rating with regard to quality, the bidder's adjusted price and the bidder's ranking based on the adjusted prices
   3. the name of the successful tender, the successful tenderer's rating with regard to quality and the price that the successful tenderer has submitted as well as the resulting adjusted price

SECTION 4 – SPECIAL TERMS

1. Notwithstanding article 16, the Conseil may decide to evaluate the level of quality of a bid in order to award a supply contract or a contract of services of a technical nature; it shall then apply the provisions of section 3.
2. Notwithstanding article 22, the Conseil may decide to solicit only one price in order to award a contract of professional services; it shall then apply the provisions of section 2.

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SECTION 1 – AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED

1. The award of a contract shall be pre-authorized by the Conseil if the amount is equal to or more than $100,000.

SECTION 2 – SUPPLEMENT

1. A contract may be amended when the amendment is non-essential and doesn't change the nature of that contract.
   
   Nevertheless, in the case of a contract involving an expense greater than the limit of the public call for tenders provided for in article 5, an amendment that incurs an additional expense must moreover be authorized by the Conseil. The total expenses authorized in this way may not, however, surpass 10% of the initial amount of the contract, as defined in the second paragraph of article 5.

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1. The tendering procedures for a contract commenced before this policy has come into effect shall be continued in accordance with the provisions in force at the beginning of the tendering procedure.
2. The policy on awarding the contracts of the Conseil de la magistrature shall come into effect on August 26, 2009.

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