Tender appeal in Montenegro — drafted in 24 hours

An appeal to the Commission for Protection of Rights in Public Procurement Procedures (Komisija za zaštitu prava u postupcima javnih nabavki) is the only remedy that suspends a Montenegrin procurement procedure. It can be brought against the tender documentation, against an amendment, or against the award or cancellation decision, under Articles 185–188 of the Public Procurement Law.

We draft appeals that pass the three tests where most appeals fail: timeliness, standing, and burden of proof.

Send the tender — free first assessment

Deadlines

Against	Deadline
Tender documentation	Art. 186: 20 days, 10 days or half the bid-submission period, depending on its length — counted from publication of the original documentation
Amendment to the documentation	Same regime; an appeal against an amendment cannot contest unamended parts (Art. 185(5))
Award / cancellation decision	10 days from receipt

An extension of the bid deadline is not an amendment and does not restart the clock. The contracting authority's reply to an amendment request is a notice, not an appealable act. Day eleven is too late.

Fee

1 % of the estimated contract value, capped at 20,000 €, payable for each lot the appeal touches (Art. 188). Proof of payment must be filed by the appeal deadline — there is no cure period. The fee is refunded when the appeal succeeds, including where the Commission annuls the documentation ex officio.

What a winning appeal contains

The Commission rejects most specification appeals for lack of evidence (Art. 194(1)) — it does not gather evidence for the appellant. Our appeals therefore include:

Timeliness and admissibility, with the deadline computation and fee proof.
A dedicated section on legal interest and harm — the Administrative Court has required concrete harm since 2018, which is why we file a clarification request first.
The constitutional framework: the Constitutional Court's test (legitimate aim, objective and reasonable justification, proportionality) applied to Arts. 8, 10, 12, 87 and 88.
Each violation stated separately: clause → what it requires → why it closes the market → which article it breaches.
Cumulative effect with a manufacturer table — individually permissible parameters that only one model satisfies in combination.
Commission and Administrative Court practice for each ground, including the authority's usual defences that the Commission has already rejected.
Evidence: the favoured product named, comparative catalogues from at least three manufacturers per contested parameter, manufacturer statements, and a request for a court expert where the subject is technical.
Ex officio grounds (Art. 196) and a precise request for relief.

After filing

Appeals are filed through the ESJN system via the contracting authority. Monitor the procedure status: if the authority fails to suspend the phase and bids open automatically, the whole procedure is annulled without examination of the merits — our database contains thirteen such decisions.

If the Commission rejects the appeal, the next step is a claim before the Administrative Court.

Price and turnaround

Included in the Max package (1,499 €/month or 16,499 €/year, excl. VAT). Document within 24 hours. The Commission fee is borne by the client and refunded on success. Pricing →

Every document requires final review by the client before filing.