The U.K. government has unveiled plans for a new legal panel, which will provide services to all central government departments as well as other public sector bodies.

The panel, which is worth up to £400 million, is being run by the Crown Commercial Service (CCS), which is running the process on behalf of the Cabinet Office.

According to an announcement published yesterday (September 4), the new panel would become the "recommended vehicle for all legal services in respect of a number of general specialisms, finance specialisms and complex projects required by U.K. central government departments".

It would replace the existing General Legal Advice Services and the Finance and Complex Legal Services (FCLS) panels, which were both appointed in 2017, a spokesperson for the CCS confirmed.

In total, 22 firms currently sit across both existing panels, with five firms – Hogan Lovells, Simmons & Simmons, Slaughter and May, Dentons and Linklaters – having places on both.

At present, all members of the Magic Circle currently sit on the government's FCLS panel.

Firms will be invited to bid for places on the panel from April 2020, with the panel being decided early in the following year. The panel will be broken down into lots, however it has not yet been announced how many lots there will be or the number of spots open for firms.

This latest move by the government follows a flurry of contract and framework announcements. Last month, the CCS refreshed its £64 million cost lawyer panel while earlier this year, both Womble Bond Dickinson and Slaughter and May were awarded contracts to advise on the U.K.'s departure from the EU.