CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz Rechtsanwälte GmbH

Public Procurement, Competition & EU, Public Law

Bernt Elsner is partner and global head of the CMS Public Procurement Group. He is a leading expert in the fields of public procurement, antitrust and public law.

He studied law at the University of Vienna and business administration at the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration. In 1993-94 he worked as a research assistant at the Austrian Constitutional Court for the constitutional judges Prof. Dr. Karl Spielbüchler and Prof. Dr. Karl Korinek. In 1997 he practised European competition law at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in Brussels. From 2004 to 2010 he was Managing Partner of CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz. He has more than 24 years of professional experience in Vienna and Brussels.

Bernt Elsner is one of the leading Austrian experts in the dynamic and constantly changing field of public procurement law. His numerous publications and lectures have had a significant impact on Austrian public procurement law.

He advises public entities on the structuring of complex tenders, advises bidders on their participation in award procedures, especially public-private partnerships (PPP projects), and frequently represents them in public procurement disputes. He has extensive experience in tender-relevant compliance issues.

Legal clerk at the Austrian Constitutional Court (1993/94); Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, Brussels (1997); partner at CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz since 2001, managing partner from 2004 to 2010; author of several standard reference books and leading commentaries on public procurement law.

German, English

Vienna Bar Association; International Bar Association; Antitrust Lawyers’ Association (Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht); Society for Construction Law (Gesellschaft für Baurecht);

University of Vienna (Mag. iur., 1989; Dr. iur., 1991); Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration (Mag. rer. soc. oec., 1993)