General terms and conditions

1. General

  1. Dijkstra | Veninga Advocaten (hereinafter: 'the partnership') is a partnership registered in the Chamber of Commerce under number 83183035. 
  2. The partnership (based on cost-sharing) is formed by the private limited company Veninga Advocatuur B.V. (registered in the Chamber of Commerce under number 75375613) and mr. M. Dijkstra Legal B.V. (registered in the Chamber of Commerce under number 96138076), (hereinafter collectively 'practice entities’ or singular 'practice entity').
  3. The client is any natural person or legal entity who gives the relevant practice company an assignment to carry out work (hereinafter: 'client').

2. Agreement and Applicability of General Terms and Conditions

  1. Each agreement is exclusively entered into with the relevant practice entity, so only the relevant practice entity is considered the contractor and bound by the agreement. Persons involved in the execution of the agreement act exclusively on behalf and at the risk of the relevant practice entity. In the confirmation letter is mentioned which practice entity the contracting party is. The partnership or the other practice entity is never a party to the contract.
  2. All assignments are only accepted when confirmed in writing by the relevant practice entity to the client.
  3. The lawyer (and hence the relevant practice entity) has a best effort obligation and will make efforts to achieve the desired result by the client, but cannot guarantee this result.
  4. In exceptional cases, the aforementioned practice entities may act in each other's practice and matters (as substitute lawyers). If circumstances warrant, this can deviate, and an external substitute may be engaged. The client agrees to this in advance.
  5. These general terms and conditions apply to all assignments between the client and the relevant practice entity (including additional and follow-up assignments). In such cases, the client is presumed to be familiar with these applicable general terms and conditions. The client's general terms and conditions are expressly not applicable.
  6. The general terms and conditions apply not only for the benefit of the relevant practice entity but also for individuals associated with the relevant practice entity(ies) or involved in the execution of the agreement on the part of the relevant practice entity. They may invoke these general terms and conditions, and the general terms and conditions also apply to those individuals and/or activities as if they were the relevant practice entity.
  7. Articles 6:6 paragraph 2, 7:404, and 7:407 paragraph 2 of the Dutch Civil Code are expressly not applicable to the agreement with the relevant practice partnership.
  8. The client is responsible for providing all relevant data for the respective case to the relevant practice entity, and the client is responsible for the accuracy of that data.

3. Financial

  1. The costs of the services provided by the relevant practice entity - which the client is liable for - are determined by multiplying the number of hours worked by the agreed hourly rate plus the applicable VAT. External costs (court fees, bailiff costs, costs of third parties engaged, etc.) are charged separately unless otherwise agreed in writing. The hourly rates can be changed annually on January 1 and/or July 1. The client authorizes the practice entity involved to conclude agreements with third parties for the purpose of the assignment to the extent necessary. Any liability of the practice company involved for any shortcomings of third parties engaged is excluded. The practice entity involved is authorized to accept any limitations of liability from third parties. If the foregoing is not applicable for any reason, the provisions of Article 4 of these general terms and conditions apply at all times.
  2. Worked hours are calculated per task and in time units of 6 minutes.
  3. The payment term for invoices is 14 days from the invoice date. This is a strict deadline as stated in Article 6:83 sub a of the Dutch Civil Code. In the event of late payment, the practice company involved may charge statutory (commercial) interest without further notice of default. If the invoice is incorrect according to the client, the client must complain within 14 days of receipt.
  4. The relevant practice entity is entitled to request an advance payment. An advance payment is generally settled with the final bill for the assignment.
  5. At the start of the assignment, the client (if a private individual) will be assessed for eligibility for government-funded legal aid. If eligible, an application for legal aid can be submitted to the Legal Aid Board. The client will then be invoiced for the client's contribution as determined by the Legal Aid Board, in addition to court fees and other costs not reimbursed (by the Legal Aid Board) to the client.
  6. After completion of the work, the relevant practice entity will apply for a reimbursement from the Legal Aid Board. Based on the financial outcome of the legal matter, the Legal Aid Board will assess whether the client is still able to pay the lawyer's fees. Depending on the outcome, legal aid can be retroactively revoked by the Legal Aid Board. In case the legal aid is definitively revoked, the client will be invoiced retroactively for the fees and any other costs in accordance with what is determined in paragraph 1 of this article.
  7. In consultation with the client, it may be decided that, even if the client is eligible for legal aid, no legal aid will be requested for the client, and the assignment will be carried out based on an hourly rate. This will always be confirmed in writing to the client.
  8. If invoices are not paid in a timely and complete manner, the relevant practice entity is entitled to suspend the work until full payment is received, excluding any liability of the relevant practice entity, the partnership, the other partners, and the other parties involved in the execution of the assignment.

4. Liability

  1. The practice entities are insured for professional liability, with liability limited (see paragraph 2).
  2. Any liability of the relevant practice entity and its affiliated lawyers is limited to the amount that the insurer of the relevant practice entity pays out in the specific case. If the insurer does not pay out, liability is limited to the amount charged in that case with a maximum of € 5,000. The relevant practice entity is never liable for indirect damage, consequential damage, and/or business damage.
  3. The limitation of liability in this article also applies if the practice entity involved has wrongly refused an assignment and damage has resulted from this.
  4. The client indemnifies the relevant practice entity against third-party claims related to the execution of the assignment.
  5. Any claim by the client will lapse if it has not been submitted in writing and with reasons to the practice entity concerned within one year after the client was or could reasonably have been aware of the facts on which he bases his claims. 
  6. The general terms and conditions have also been stipulated for the benefit of the employees and (legal) persons affiliated with the practice entity concerned and other third parties involved in the execution of the assignment. They can rely on these conditions at any time and this provision therefore qualifies as a third-party clause.

5. Termination of the Assignment

  1. The client has the authority to terminate the assignment by giving written notice at any time. Termination must be in writing.
  2. The relevant practice entity is at all times entitled to terminate the agreement for assignment immediately without incurring any liability.
  3. A file will be digitally retained for 7 years after the end of the relevant case. After this retention period, the relevant practice entity is entitled to destroy the file without notifying the client.

6. Complaints and Dispute Resolution

  1. The partnership and the relevant practice entity(ies) have an internal complaints and dispute resolution procedure, which can be found on the website and can be requested from the relevant practice entity. Complaints against Mr. Veninga can be addressed in writing to Mr. Dijkstra, and vice versa. Complaints that have not been resolved after handling can be submitted to de Geschillencommissie in Den Haag, to which the relevant practice entity is affiliated.

7. Privacy Statement

  1. The partnership and the relevant practice entity(ies) have a Privacy Statement that applies, among other things, to the agreement between the relevant practice entity and the client. The applicable Privacy Statement can be found on the website and can be requested from the relevant practice entity.

8. WWFT

  1. The partnership and the practice entities involved are obliged, among other things, under the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft), to (i) determine the identity of clients and that of their ultimate beneficiary(ies), (ii) to determine whether there is a politically exposed person and (iii) to report unusual transactions within the meaning of the Wwft to the appropriate authorities. Based on the Wwft, the partnership and the practice company(s) involved are prohibited from communicating the notification referred to above under (iii) to the client. The Client is obliged to report all relevant facts and circumstances that are relevant for the application of this law and the client research to be carried out on the basis thereof by the partnership and the practice company(s) involved, including changes in those facts and circumstances that have occurred during the existence of the client relationship

9. Applicable Law

  1. Dutch law applies to the legal relationship between the client and the relevant practice entity, and disputes will be submitted in the first instance to the competent court of Rechtbank Noord-Nederland, location Leeuwarden, with the relevant practice entity having the right to bring a matter before the court that would be relatively competent without a forum choice.