General Terms and Conditions of the partnership ’VAN DEN BOUT advocaten’ (2009)
Article 1: ’VAN DEN BOUT advocaten’
’VAN DEN BOUT advocaten’, hereinafter referred to as: “the partnership”, consists of a natural and legal person, viz., a private limited (professional) partnership. Further information is available on request.
Article 2: The contract
The contract is entered into with the partnership as such. This also applies when the commissioning party has the explicit or implicit intention that the instruction is carried out by a certain person in particular.
The scope of article 7:404 of the Netherlands Civil Code, which provides for the case last referred to, and the scope of article 7:407 paragraph 2 of the Netherlands Civil Code, which attaches joint and several liability in the cases with regard to which two or more persons receive an instruction, are explicitly excluded.
Article 3: Liability
3.1
Any (non-) contractual liability of the partnership and/or its partners (including its director(s)), as well as that of its staff, is limited to the amount paid out in the relevant case by virtue of the (professional) liability insurance of the partnership, including policy excess. The contents and conditions of this professional liability insurance meet the requirements set by the Dutch Bar Association. A copy of the current professional liability policy is sent to the commissioning party on request.
3.2
The instruction given shall be performed for the benefit of the instructing party only. No third-party rights can be derived from the contents of the work carried out.
Article 4: Obligations of the commissioning party
4.1
If the commissioning party discloses the contents of the work carried out by the partnership for them, the commissioning party must inform the third party of these General Terms and Conditions and ensure they are also accepted by this third party.
4.2
The commissioning party indemnifies the partnership against all claims of third parties that state to have incurred losses as result of or in relation to the work carried out by the partnership for the commissioning party.
4.3
Invoices of the partnership must be settled within 14 days of the invoice date, without setoff or suspension, whereas any advance bills must be paid immediately. If this term is exceeded, the commissioning party is in default by operation of law and owes default interest equal to the statutory interest. If the commissioning party is in default, the partnership is entitled to suspend its activities. If the commissioning party fails to settle any reminders within 14 days, it owes extraordinary collection charges in accordance with the fees of the Netherlands Association for the Judiciary, subject to a minimum of € 100.
Article 5: Engagement of third parties
5.1
The choice of third party to be engaged by the partnership shall, where possible and appointed in all reasonableness, be made in consultation with the commissioning party and with due observance of the necessary care. The partnership cannot be held liable for any shortcomings of this third party, except in the event of intention or gross negligence of the partnership.
5.2
If these third parties wish to limit their liability in connection with the execution of the instruction issued by the commissioning party, the partnership assumes and, if so required, hereby confirms, that all instructions given to them by the commission party include the authorisation to accept such limitation of liability on behalf of the commissioning party.
Article 6: Rates / method of invoicing
The partnership is entitled to amend the basic hourly rate and travel expenses applied by them. If the amendment entails a rise of more than 10% or if prices rise within three months of the instruction agreed between the partnership and commissioning party, the commissioning party is entitled to terminate the contract. The commissioning party‘s right to terminate expires on the 15th day after the invoice date of the first invoice sent to the commissioning party after increasing the basic hourly rate and/or aforesaid travel expenses. In principle, the partnership invoices on a monthly basis.
The commissioning party shall be charged 6% of the fees to cover office expenses that cannot be specified, including paper, postage and stamps, telephone, fax and copying expenses, as well as costs in relation to the implementation of the regulations of the Dutch Bar Association.
The fees and office expenses are increased with the VAT due.
Article 7: Complaint Handling Regulations / Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession
7.1
The Complaints and Disputes Handling Regulations of the Legal Profession shall apply to all assignments performed by the Partnership. Clients not satisfied with the quality of the services rendered or the fees i.a. charged shall first submit their complaints in writing to the Partnership. Clients must submit a complaint in writing by registered letter to the Partnership within three months from the moment at which he became acquainted or could reasonably have become acquainted with the actions or failure to act that led to the complaint. The Partnership may submit unpaid invoices for collection to the Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession.
7.2
The Partnership shall discuss the complaint with the Client as soon as possible in reasonable consultation. Within four weeks from the complaint having been received, the Partnership shall deal with the complaint in writing. If the Partnership does not succeed in solving the complaint in due time with the Client, then the Client may submit his complaint to the Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession.
7.3
The Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession shall deal with the case in accordance with the Disputes Committee Regulations in force at the time of the submittance of the complaint to this Committee. A copy of these Regulations may be obtained at the following address: P.O. Box 90600, 2509 LP The Hague, the Netherlands. Clients may submit complaints to the Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession until twelve months after they have been settled in writing by the Partnership at the address mentioned above. After this period of time this possibility shall no longer exist.
7.4
The Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession is authorized to determine on complaints regarding the way assignments to the Partnership came about and/or their performance, the level and/or collection of one or more notes of charges sent by the Partnership to the Client, and a claim to compensate damages or loss that, assessed at the time of submittance, does not or will not exceed the amount of EUR 10,000 (inclusive of Dutch VAT (BTW)) or is explicitly limited to such amount whereby any right to an amount in excess is relinquished.
7.5
A decision of the Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession is not appealable. In case the Client or the Partnership deems the decision of the Disputes Committee on the Legal Profession unreasonable, the decision may be brought within three months from its forwarding before the Court in The Hague that is exclusively competent by summoning the other party to appear in court. This Court, however, will only test the decision marginally; the Court will limit itself to judging the question whether the decision violates the general rules of reasonableness and fairness or not.
Article 8: Miscellaneous
8.1
These General Terms and Conditions are partly stipulated for the partners of the partnership referred to, the director(s) of the private limited professional partnership and all individuals employed by the partnership.
8.2
All contracts between the commissioning party and the partnership are governed by Dutch law only
8.3
Any disputes shall be resolved exclusively by the competent Dutch court in the judicial district where the partnership is located. The partnership reserves the right to apply to the competent court of the domicile of the commissioning party instead.
8.4
Closed files shall be archived and retained for a period of 7 years, after which the dossier shall be destroyed.
8.5
The General Terms and Conditions are formulated in both the Dutch and English language. In the event of any contradictions in contents or purport, the Dutch text prevails.
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