Complaints and Disputes

Complaints and Disputes of the Netherlands Bar Association

The Complaints and Disputes Procedure of the Netherlands Bar Association is applicable to our service. If you are not satisfied about the quality of the service provided or the amount of the fee note, please get in touch with your regular lawyer first to express your objections. Should you be unhappy about the outcome, you may contact the complaints officer at our law firm.

Our complaints procedure shall serve as a guideline when dealing with your complaint. Such complaints procedure and the name of the complaints officer are available upon request. Any complaints must be submitted within three months after the moment at which you became aware of or could in all fairness have been aware of the act or omission that gave rise to your complaint.

If you feel that our law firm has not resolved your objections satisfactorily, you may wish to lodge a complaint before the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar. The Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar shall handle the case according to the Regulations of the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar applicable at the moment of lodging the complaint before such board. You may obtain a copy of these regulations from the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar at P.O. Box 90600, 2509 LP The Hague. You may lodge your complaint to the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar at the address stated above up to twelve months after the written response from our law firm.

The Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar shall issue a decision in the form of an arbitration award for corporate clients or in the form of a binding opinion in the event that the dispute is brought forward by a private client. The Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar is authorized to judge complaints about the quality of the service provided by the lawyer and the amount of the fee note. You may also feel that you are entitled to damages. The Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar is authorized to judge damage claims as well up to a maximum amount of € 10,000. Damage claims exceeding such amount can only be brought before the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar if you explicitly limit the amount of the claim to a maximum of €  10,000, in which case you waive your claim in writing to the excess amount.

Our law firm is entitled to submit unpaid fee notes for collection to the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar.

Against the decision of the Arbitration Board of the Netherlands Bar no appeal shall be possible.