Cas Michiels

Short Reads - The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has found in a judgment of May 2020 that the right of a legal assistance insured person to freely choose his or her lawyer applies not only to proceedings before a court or an administrative body, but also to stages in a dispute that may lead to such proceedings before a court.

Short Reads - Dutch law provides for an extension of the limitation period in relation to claims that were “deliberately hidden” from the creditor (article 3:321 (f) Dutch Civil Code). The extension also applies if the debtor deliberately hid the fact that the claim had become due and payable (upon fulfilment of a certain condition, for example). It is, however, unclear what kind of conduct qualifies as deliberate hiding. 

Articles - Hoe producenten kunnen voorkomen dat afnemers van hun producten daarmee mensenrechtenschendingen plegen.

Short Reads - The Court of Appeal of Arnhem-Leeuwarden ruled on 3 March 2020 that an accountant did not properly advise her client with respect to a sale of real estate (ECLI:NL:GHARL:2020:1875). In her research concerning the consequences of the sale, the accountant had failed to properly review the contracts between the seller and the financier of the real estate. The accountant had therefore acted unlawfully.