Municipality of Thimister-Clermont withdraws road works award after urgent suspension request – no longer any reason to rule
The urgent suspension request was declared moot after the municipality of Thimister-Clermont withdrew the contested award decision for road works. Pierre Frere & Fils was considered the successful party and awarded costs.
What happened?
The municipal executive of Thimister-Clermont decided on 22 September 2020 to declare Pierre Frere & Fils' tender for road works ('raclage et pose – année 2020') irregular and to award the contract to another bidder. Pierre Frere & Fils filed for suspension under the extreme urgency procedure. On 3 November 2020 — before the hearing — the municipality withdrew the contested decision. No bidder challenged the withdrawal. The case was adjourned sine die and only formally concluded in 2024. The Council found there was no longer any reason to rule, but treated the withdrawal as a surrogate for a judicial annulment, meaning the municipality bore the costs as the losing party.
Why does this matter?
This ruling again illustrates the tactical pattern where a contracting authority withdraws its award decision after an urgent suspension request. The Council expressly treats the withdrawal as a surrogate for a judicial annulment, meaning the authority is deemed the losing party for costs purposes — even though no substantive ruling is delivered.
The lesson
A withdrawal after an urgent suspension request avoids a substantive ruling, but not the cost consequences. The contracting authority is deemed the losing party. Evaluate before awarding whether your decision will withstand legal challenge.
Ask yourself
If I withdraw my award decision as soon as an urgent suspension request is filed, what does that say about the quality of my original evaluation?
About this database
The Council of State (Raad van State / Conseil d'État) is Belgium's supreme administrative court. In disputes over public procurement — from contract awards to tenderer exclusions — the Council of State is the final arbiter. The rulings in this database are summarised by TenderWolf in plain language, with practical lessons for tenderers and contracting authorities. View all rulings →