Guide · Results & appeals

Procurement rectification vs. the Market Court – a bidder's legal remedies at the moment of the award

When the procurement decision has been made and you spot a clear error in the procedure or in the comparison, being annoyed is not enough. The Public Procurement Act offers a bidder two actual legal routes for correcting the error: a rectification request and an appeal to the Market Court.

Updated 7 July 2026 · Tendera

Choosing the right route is both a legal and a business decision. Both have strict deadlines (typically 14 days from being notified of the decision), so a bidder must be able to decide quickly. This article covers the differences between the two procedures and when each is worth using.

1. Procurement rectification (section 132) — fast, free first aid

A rectification request means asking the contracting authority itself to correct the error it has made. It is an administrative procedure addressed directly to the agency, municipality or organisation that made the decision.

How it works: You make a written request specifying what went wrong in the decision or the procedure and how it should be corrected (for example, that a rejected bid should be included in the comparison or that the scores should be recalculated).
Cost and duration: Making a rectification request is entirely free of charge. It is also a considerably faster way of resolving unclear points than court proceedings, because the buyer can make a new, corrective decision through a relatively light process.
When is it worth using? A rectification request is the most effective tool when the error is clear and indisputable. That could be an arithmetical error in the comparison table, the rejection of a bid due to an obvious misunderstanding, or a formal mistake that the contracting authority itself realises it has made.

Contracting authorities are not, however, obliged to change their decision on the basis of a rectification request. If the matter is open to interpretation (such as the subjectivity of quality scoring), a buyer rarely overturns its own decision on a rectification request alone.

2. Appeal to the Market Court (section 146) — a heavy and binding legal process

If the error is significant and the contracting authority will not correct it on a rectification request, the matter can be taken to the Market Court. The Market Court is a specialised court that oversees the lawfulness of public procurement.

How it works: You lodge a formal appeal with the Market Court. Among other things, the court can annul an unlawful procurement decision, prohibit the buyer from applying an unlawful clause in the tender documents, impose a penalty payment, or order the contracting authority to pay compensation to a bidder who was treated unfairly.
Cost and duration: This is the heavy route. The Market Court's fees are high for companies (several thousand euros depending on the value of the procurement), and the process almost always requires hiring a specialised lawyer. Processing times are long, often 8–12 months. There is also a cost risk: if you lose the case, you will often have to cover the contracting authority's legal costs as well.
When is it worth using? Appealing to the Market Court is a strategic decision that should be used with care. It is justified when the value of the procurement is very high, the error is legally significant, and you have strong evidence that you would have won the tender but for that error.

3. The strategic choice in B2G sales

Experienced bidders often use both remedies in parallel: they file a quick rectification request and, as a precaution, also an appeal to the Market Court within the 14-day deadline. If the contracting authority corrects the error through the rectification, the appeal can be withdrawn before the court proceedings properly begin.

Managing the customer relationship must also be kept in mind. Litigation against a customer sours the relationship for a long time. This is why smart sales organisations invest heavily in needs mapping and market dialogue before the tender documents are published, so that flawed terms can be influenced through discussion and matters never need to be settled through lawyers.

Frequently asked questions

What is a procurement rectification?

A written request that the contracting authority itself correct the error it has made (section 132). It is free of charge and faster than court proceedings — most effective for clear and indisputable errors, such as an arithmetical error in the comparison table.

When is it worth taking a matter to the Market Court?

When the error is significant and the contracting authority does not correct it on a rectification request — especially in matters open to interpretation, a buyer rarely overturns its own decision. The Market Court can, among other things, annul an unlawful decision (section 146).

What is the deadline for the legal remedies?

For both, typically 14 days from being notified of the procurement decision, so the choice of route has to be made quickly.