Complaints About Public Contracts or Contracts by Mutual Agreement

If the documents from an ongoing call for tenders, qualification of suppliers, certification of goods, or awarding of a contract by mutual agreement pursuant to subparagraph 4 of the first paragraph of section 13 of the ACPB include conditions that do not ensure the honest and fair treatment of bidders, do not allow bidders to compete although they are qualified to meet the requirements, or are otherwise not compliant with the normative framework, the appropriate course of action is to first communicate your concerns to INRS by contacting the person listed in the notice published on the SEAO.

Filing a complaint

Under the ACPB, complaints can only be filed by:

• An enterprise or a group of enterprises interested in participating in the tendering and awarding process, or its representative

For the purposes of the Act, “enterprise” means a legal person established for a private interest, a general, limited or undeclared partnership or a natural person who operates a sole proprietorship.

Award process

An enterprise can file a complaint about one of the following award processes:

• To maintain your right of recourse under the ACPB, all complaints must be filed in accordance with the Procédure portant sur la réception et l’examen des plaintes prévues à l’article 21.0.3 de la Loi sur les contrats des organismes publics. Complaints must be submitted on the form provided by Autorité des Marchés publics (AMP), downloadable here.

Duly completed forms must be emailed to the following two addresses:

• plaintescontratspublics@dev.inrs.ca, for consideration by INRS

and

• formulaire.plainte@amp.gouv.qc.ca, for consideration by the AMP.

Awarding a contract by mutual agreement listed in subparagraph 4 of the first paragraph of section 13 of the ACPB

Enterprises interested in this type of contract must send their request to the INRS representative named in the notice of intention registered on the SEAO site. Enterprises must clearly demonstrate in their email their ability to carry out the contract according to the detailed description of the contract requirements and obligations as defined in the notice of intention.  

If INRS’s response is deemed unsatisfactory or if the INRS representative does not respond, enterprises may file a complaint following the method indicated above.

Submitting a complaint or an expression of interest

The duly completed complaint form or email containing an expression of interest should be sent to plaintescontratspublics@dev.inrs.ca no later than:

• The complaint deadline specified on the SEAO, for complaints about an award process

In the case of a contract by mutual agreement listed in subparagraph 4 of the first paragraph of section 13 of the ACPB, two options are possible:

• 1. The complaint must be received no later than three (3) days after the receipt of INRS’s response to the expression of interest, or no earlier than three (3) days and no later than one (1) day before the scheduled date of signing of the contract if INRS has not made a decision.
• 2. If the notice of intention required by law has not been published, the complaint may be filed at any time.

Once INRS receives your complaint form or your email, a confirmation of receipt will be emailed back to you.

Withdrawing a complaint or an expression of interest

A complaint or an expression of interest must be withdrawn before the complaint deadline or no later than five days before the projected contract date, respectively. An email should be sent to plaintescontratspublics@dev.inrs.ca clearly indicating the name of the enterprise that filed the complaint or the expression of interest and why it is being withdrawn.

Consideration of the complaint or expression of interest and transmission of the decision

INRS will consider the complaint or the expression of interest based on the information provided by the enterprise:

• On the complaint form for documents related to the award process, or
• In the email demonstrating the enterprise’s ability to carry out the contract according to the requirements and obligations specified in the notice of intention

A complaint or expression of interest is inadmissible if the enterprise is taking or has taken legal action in relation to the same facts set forth in the complaint or email.

If warranted, INRS may contact the enterprise for more information on the reasons set forth in the complaint or email.

INRS will transmit its decision regarding the enterprise’s complaint or expression of interest by email:

• After the complaint deadline but no later than three days before the tender closing date. If the tender closing date is sooner, it will be postponed by the number of days needed to ensure compliance with the foregoing. If necessary, the tender closing date will be postponed by the number of days needed to allow for a minimum of seven days between the date INRS transmits its decision and the tender closing date.
• For expressions of interest following the publication of a notice of intention, at least seven days before the projected contract date. If the projected contract date is sooner, it will be postponed by the number of days needed to ensure compliance with the foregoing.

After in-depth consideration of the complaint or expression of interest, INRS will take the required corrective action if warranted. Otherwise, if the enterprise disagrees with the INRS decision, it can file a complaint with AMP no later than three days after receiving the decision.

If the enterprise does not receive the INRS decision within the required time frame, it can complain to the AMP:

• For complaints about an award process, no later than the tender closing date set by INRS
• For expressions of interest following the publication of a notice of intention, at least one day before the projected date of the mutual agreement contract specified by INRS on the SEAO.

Prohibition against reprisal

Enterprises must be able to file a complaint without fear of reprisal by INRS. Pursuant to section 51 of the Act respecting the Autorité des Marchés publics, it is forbidden to take reprisal against a person or partnership so they will abstain from filing a complaint with the AMP. Persons or partnerships who believe they are victims of retaliation may file a complaint with the AMP. The AMP will determine whether the complaint has merit and make any recommendations it considers appropriate to the chief executive officer of the public body concerned by the reprisal. After reviewing the case the AMP will notify the complainant of its findings and of any recommendations, if applicable.

Procedures

• Procédure sur les contrats d’approvisionnement, de services, de technologies de l’information et de travaux de construction de l’INRS (PDF)
• Procédure portant sur la réception et l’examen des plaintes prévues à l’article 21.0.3 de la Loi sur les contrats des organismes publics (PDF)