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Government contracts and procurement lawyer in Brazil
For companies that sell to the government and for public managers who need to decide with legal certainty, from the tender notice to contract performance.
A government contracts and procurement lawyer in Brazil guides companies and public managers through every stage of public contracting under Law 14,133/2021: reviewing and challenging tender notices, bidding, appeals, contract performance, economic-financial rebalancing and defense in sanctioning proceedings. Call before submitting a bid or as soon as a notice from the agency arrives.
A government contracts and procurement lawyer in Brazil is useful long before the appeal. Companies that sell to the government deal with technical tender notices, short deadlines, detailed qualification rules and contracts that can last for years, while public managers must decide knowing that every act will be reviewed by internal control, audit courts and the Public Prosecutor's Office.
Law 14,133/2021 unified the rules on public tenders and administrative contracts and became the regime for new contracts, with planning, risk matrices, mandatory integrity programs in large-scale contracts and sanctions ranging from a warning to a declaration of unfitness. Law 12,846/2013, the Anti-Corruption Law, and Law 13,303/2016, on state-owned companies, complete the picture.
We guide companies, including foreign bidders, to compete and perform contracts safely, and we support public managers in making legally grounded decisions, always after a prior conflict-of-interest check. The work connects procurement, administrative law, compliance and litigation.
Industry challenges
Restrictive tender clauses
Disproportionate qualification requirements, tailored specifications and poorly defined award criteria keep competitors out. The deadline to challenge is short, and once it is missed, the discussion becomes harder.
Disqualification
A missing document, a questioned cost spreadsheet or a different reading of the tender notice can take a company out of the competition. The response must be technical and within the appeal deadline.
Imbalance during performance
Rising input costs, late payments, unilateral changes and unforeseeable events erode the contract's margin. Without records and formal requests, rebalancing is hard to obtain.
Sanctions and accountability
Sanctioning proceedings can lead to fines, debarment from bidding and a declaration of unfitness. Public managers, in turn, answer to audit courts and in administrative misconduct lawsuits.
How we help
Tender review and challenges
We assess the tender notice before the bid, point out risks and illegalities and prepare well-grounded challenges and requests for clarification.
Bidding support and appeals
We support the preparation of qualification documents and bids and handle appeals and responses during the evaluation and qualification stages.
Administrative contract management
We guide performance, amendments, economic-financial rebalancing requests, price adjustments and renegotiations, with documentation that supports each claim.
Defense in sanctioning and audit proceedings
We defend companies and public managers in administrative sanctioning proceedings, before audit courts and in lawsuits, with a technical strategy from the first filing.
Practice areas involved
Frequently asked questions
Which law governs public tenders in Brazil today?
Law 14,133/2021 is the general law on public tenders and administrative contracts for the federal government, states, the Federal District and municipalities. State-owned companies follow their own regime under Law 13,303/2016, and older contracts may remain governed by the law under which they were signed.
How do I challenge a tender notice in Brazil?
The challenge is filed in writing with the contracting agency up to 3 business days before the bid opening, under article 164 of Law 14,133/2021, pointing out the illegality or undue restriction. It should cite the rule breached and, where possible, suggest the correction, which makes it easier for the agency itself to adjust the text.
What is economic-financial rebalancing of a public contract?
It is the restoration of the contract's original conditions when unforeseeable events, or foreseeable events with incalculable consequences, or changes imposed by the government break the balance between obligations and compensation. The request requires documentary evidence of the impact and must be filed during contract performance.
My company was fined by the contracting agency. Can we still defend ourselves?
Yes, Law 14,133/2021 ensures a prior defense and an appeal in sanctioning proceedings. Deadlines are short and run from the notice, so the defense should be prepared as soon as the notice arrives, with evidence of performance and of the company's conduct.
Can a public manager be held liable for a technical decision?
Yes, but the law limits that liability. Article 28 of the LINDB (Law of Introduction to the Norms of Brazilian Law), added by Law 13,655/2018, provides that public officials are personally liable for technical decisions and opinions in cases of intent or gross error, and the Administrative Misconduct Law (Law 8,429/1992, amended by Law 14,230/2021) requires intent. Well-reasoned, documented decisions reduce the manager's personal risk.
Bidding on a public tender or facing a problem with a contract?
Send us the tender notice or the notice you received and get an objective assessment of risks, deadlines and next steps.