35 JAAR ADVOCAAT – 35 YEARS BEING A LAWYER
Ik vier dat door gewoon door te werken
Over ongeveer een maand (12 september 2024) ben ik 35 jaar advocaat. In die jaren heb ik veel geleerd, ook buiten mijn vakgebied. Daarnaast heb ik behoorlijk wat boeken en artikelen geschreven over het ondernemingsrecht en financieel recht. Als docent aan de universiteit in Curacao heb ik gedurende twee decennia (en met veel enthousiasme) ook veel kennis aan anderen mogen overbrengen. Maar ik ben nog lang niet van plan te stoppen. Zoek je goede raad in zaken die betrekking hebben op het recht in de Caribische delen van het Koninkrijk neem dan …
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THE BINDING EFFECT OF JUDGMENTS
Limited to the parties involved in the proceedings
Court decisions, even decisions by the Dutch Supreme Court, are not binding on courts when deciding future cases. However, the Code of Civil Procedure prevents parties from litigating twice on the same legal issue. The principle that a final judgment of a competent court is conclusive upon the parties in any subsequent litigation involving the same cause of action is known as ‘res judicata ’.
A Dutch court case is described below illustrating this principle: Utrecht District Court of 19 March 2009 (NJF 2009/291).
In initial litigation, the claimant had sought payment …
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SHAREHOLDER APPROVAL REQUIRED FOR SELLING ALL ASSETS
In particular circumstances this rule may be set aside
Generally speaking, the management board of a company (NV or BV) is not entitled to sell the company’s business or a substantial part thereof, without the approval of the shareholders’ meeting. The Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Appeal in Amsterdam confirmed this in its decision of 27 February 2014 (ECLI:NL:GHAMS:2014:597; JOR 2014, 160). According to the Court, (the managing board of) a legal entity that intends selling all shares in its subsidiaries must observe the requirements for adopting a resolution to liquidate that entity.
According to Section 2:7(2) of the Civil …
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THE CURACAO TRUST BECOMES MORE AND MORE POPULAR
Curaçao Trust could be used for asset segregation purposes
According to Professor of Law David Hayton, an Anglo-Saxon trust arises from the settlor’s transfer of title to property to another person, intending that person to be a trustee-manager of it for the benefit of beneficiaries or for a charitable or other permitted purpose. Trusts are founded on a transfer of title to property: contracts are not. Professor Hayton:
Such a contractual concept inevitably leads – or rather misleads – civil lawyers to consider that the Anglo-Saxon trust is simply a glorified form of contract between the settlor …
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LAW FIRMS SEE ALTERNATIVE FEE ARRANGEMENTS AS HERE TO STAY
“I don’t think the billable hour is dead, but I think it has company”
According to an article by Kim Lyons of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “the billable hour has long been the mainstay of law firms and their pay structure. But in recent years, firms have had to become more creative in how they get paid, as they compete for business with ever more cost-conscious companies.
Enter the “alternative fee arrangement.” Whether it’s a flat fee, a capped fee, a blended rate or some other variety, alternative fee arrangements are giving the billable hour a run for its money.”
ADVOCATEN EN DECLARABELE UREN
Wat is daar eigenlijk mis mee?
Overal lees je dat advocatenkantoren moeten veranderen. Ze zijn te conservatief. Ze houden vast aan het verleden en zijn alles behalve innovatief. Naarmate het economisch slechter gaat wordt de roep om verandering steeds sterker.
Met name het systeem van ‘uurtje factuurtje’ moet het ontgelden. Advocaten wordt verweten dat zij tijdschrijven met een vork. Dat zij niet efficiënt werken. Dat zij te duur zijn. Het syteem zou verkeerde prikkels meebrengen, mede omdat de controle op het daadwerkelijke aantal nuttig besteedde uren niet goed mogelijk is.
Wie deze kritiek tot zich laat doordringen kan niet anders …
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US LAW GOVERNED AGREEMENTS
Curaçao and St. Maarten Courts will accept the choice of laws
One of the questions frequently asked is whether the Courts in Curaçao or St. Maarten, if an action is brought before them, will pay deference to a “choice of governing law” and/or venue provision in an agreement, in particular when the parties have chosen US Law, and a US Court to resolve their disputes.
The choice of the laws of (a particular State of) the United States of America as the laws governing an agreement is valid and binding under the laws of Curaçao/St. Maarten, and will therefore be …
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ELECTRONIC MONEY INSTITUTIONS IN ARUBA
A license is required
The European Central Bank defines e-money as follows (a non-legal definition): “E-money can be defined as any amount of monetary value represented by a claim issued on a prepaid basis, stored in an electronic medium (for example, a card or computer) and accepted as a means of payment by undertakings other than the issuer, predominantly for small-value transactions (for example, the settlement of modest transactions over the Internet and of parking or telephone charges and payment for public transport services).” (Electronic Money Institutions. Current trends, regulatory issues and future prospects. Legal Working Paper Series, No. 7/2008).
ASSET PROTECTION IN CURACAO
Curaçao: a jurisdiction not to be missed
A Curaçao private foundation or a trust is often used for asset protection and privacy purposes. The Curaçao private foundation and the Curaçao trust must be set up by a notarial deed executed before a civil law notary in Curaçao. Both the private foundation and the trust are a very flexible solution for asset protection and privacy purposes. A private foundation, for instance, can be easily implemented in international holding structures through Curaçao and is very suitable for family asset protection. By means of a letter of wishes or provisions in the articles …
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THE CURACAO TRUST
Can be used as protected or segregated cell company
On 1 January 2012, new legislation entered into force according to which it is now possible to set up a trust (Curacao Trust) similar to the trust in Anglo-Saxon common law jurisdictions. The introduction of the Curacao Trust serves as an important instrument which could be used within financial transactions in the Caribbean as a significant part of these transactions are initiated from common law jurisdictions.
The Curacao Trust can be used for different purposes, such as, for example:
THIS BLOG IS ARCHIVED BY THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Blogs of today can be studied for years to come
I’m thrilled to learn from Robert Ambrogi’s blog that “Karel’s Legal Blog” has been archived in the Library of Congress:
On the Internet there is no rule against perpetuities. To the contrary our perpetuation seems assured. Latest case in point: the new Legal Blawgs Web Archive from the Library of Congress. Yes, just as the LOC is archiving all of our tweets, turns out it is also archiving a selection of legal blog posts, and has been doing so since March 1, 2007. (…)
The LOC describes …
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LITIGATION IS A SKILLED PROFESSION (part 8)
New legislation
Finally, note that rather simple examples have been taken here. However, many suits are complicated with regard to their subject matter. In this connection disputes about complicated take-over issues, disputes between investors and an investment fund, disputes with a contractor or architect about a building or disputes about intellectual property come to mind. All these types of dispute require from advocates much more knowledge of and experience with litigation. It is not that each advocate must be an expert in all those areas but he should at least have experts in his team.
Only a few aspects of …
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