Government Contracts and Tenders — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Legal Nature — An LoI is ordinarily a precursor to a contract, indicating intent to enter into a future agreement, but does not itself create a concluded contract or vested, enforceable rights unless the necessary preconditions are satisfied — A bidder’s commercial expectation that a contract will follow an LoI is not a juridical entitlement — If the LoI explicitly stipulates conditions precedent (like compatibility testing, live demonstration, and cost disclosure) before execution of an agreement/final award letter, the LoI remains provisional and conditional until such prerequisites are met. (Paras 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19
2025 INSC 1355 SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH AND ANOTHER Vs. M/S OASYS CYBERNATICS PVT. LTD. ( Before : Surya Kant, CJI., Ujjal Bhuyan and…

