Commercial

Advice on the full range of healthcare commercial law issues relevant to our public sector, third sector and private sector clients

Our healthcare commercial law services include:

  • Supply contracts – we advise on all types of contracts for the supply of goods and services by private companies, social enterprises, charities, housing associations and the public sector.
  • Public sector contracts – we advise on contracts for the supply of goods and services between public bodies including NHS bodies, local authorities and central government departments. The NHS is increasingly moving towards the use of legally binding contracts, instead of non-legally binding Service Level Agreements (SLAs), and we advise on both types of agreement.
  • Outsourcing – we advise on outsourcing arrangements, including, for example, for the outsourcing of activities and functions such as facilities management, IT services, back office operations (such as payroll and invoicing), publishing, conference organising and customer operations (such as helpdesks, complaints, call routing and frontline administration).
  • Agency, distribution and franchising – we advise on agency, distribution and franchise arrangements, including the implications of these arrangements under EU competition law.
  • Terms and conditions of trade – we advise clients on developing standard terms and conditions of trade, including the use of e-commerce.
  • Collaborations and joint ventures – we advise on the establishment, development and dissolution of all types of collaborations and joint ventures, including contractual, partnership and corporate structures.
  • Grant agreements – we advise clients on grant funding agreements with government departments and other statutory bodies (including NHS bodies).
  • Clinical trial agreements – we have expertise in the drafting and negotiation of clinical trial agreements, which naturally complements the commercial work that we do for the NHS.
  • Intellectual property – we advise on the protection and exploitation of intellectual property rights. We also advise on the negotiation of confidentiality/non-disclosure agreements.

Key services and issues

  • Contracts for the supply of goods and services
  • Outsourcing arrangements
  • Agency, distribution and franchising
  • Terms and conditions of trade
  • Collaborations and joint ventures
  • Grant agreements
  • Clinical trial agreements
  • Intellectual property
  • Confidentiality agreements
  • Procurement

Case studiesView all

  • Development of healthcare apps

    Advising on development of healthcare apps for patients, including advising NHS Northern England Strategic Clinical Networks on its Deciding Right app for making care decisions and NHS South East Commissioning Support Unit on its Health Help Now app to enable users to find the right service for their health needs.

    View Case study

  • Setting up GP provider organisations and federations

    Ross Clark

    Advising General Practitioners across the country on transforming primary care by setting up over 50 GP provider organisations or federations to extend primary and out of hospital care services; these organisations represent a patient population in excess of 12 million and include Iceni Healthcare with 174 Practices across Norfolk and Waveney, Somerset Primary Care (94 Practices) and BIG Practice (Birmingham Integrated General Practice) of over 100 Practices.

    View Case study

  • Setting up new healthcare businesses

    Advising entrepreneurs on setting up new healthcare businesses including businesses delivering primary and community health services, medical services for foreign visitors to the UK and supplying locum doctors and nurses, including via online marketplace/gig economy models.

    View Case study

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  • Paul Henry, Deputy Director of Operations Support, East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust 2020
    “Hempsons provided all the assistance I needed. The legal team provided me with responsive, sufficiently detailed but measured counsel proportionate with the stage of dispute I was managing. This considered approach to escalation gave me the confidence to navigate a complex situation at the lowest appropriate level with the other parties and establish the best solution.”