THE ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION OF A DUTCH CARIBBEAN LEGAL ENTITY (III)

Case law the principle of good faith

A legal entity and all involved in its organization have a legal duty to behave towards each in accordance with the principles of reasonableness and fairness, i.e. (objective) good faith. A provision or requirement contained in a legal entity’s articles of association or by-laws, may be set aside by the Courts if, in any given circumstances, it is in breach of the principles of reasonableness and fairness. Good faith may, in a certain cases, extinguish rules prevailing between the parties or exclude their application.

I will discuss two Dutch court cases below. It …
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Nov 2009
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THE ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION OF A DUTCH CARIBBEAN LEGAL ENTITY (II)

Limitations on the applicability of provisions

As a general matter of Netherlands Antilles law, the interpretation of terms contained in legal documents, such as the articles of association and the by-laws, however only to a certain extent, inter alia subject to the intention of the parties, and the enforcement thereof, is subject to the overriding principle of “fairness and reasonableness” (in Dutch: “redelijkheid en billijkheid”) meaning that under certain circumstances a term of the articles of association or by-laws may not be applicable in so far as this term would in such circumstances be contrary to this principle.

According to …
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Nov 2009
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THE ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION OF A DUTCH CARIBBEAN LEGAL ENTITY (I)

Ranging from basic to extremely complex

Under the laws of the Netherlands Antilles, public and private limited liability companies (NVs or BVs), foundations, co-operatives, mutual insurance societies and associations are considered legal entities.

The articles of incorporation (a.k.a. articles of association) provide the regulatory framework by which these legal entities in the Netherlands Antilles are governed and by which they must abide. Additionally regulations (‘reglementen’) are sometimes also used as a sort of ‘by-laws’.

The articles of association are more or less comparable with the constitution of a country. Regulations can for instance be adopted by a managing board, a …
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Oct 2009
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