NL Bar Admission flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Kort geding

Summary interim relief proceedings before the district court for urgent matters. The judge grants provisional measures if the claim is plausible and urgency exists; the decision does not bind the merits judge.

Substantive appeal deadline

An appeal against a district court judgment must be lodged within three months of service or dispatch of the judgment, failing which the judgment becomes final and enforceable.

Cassation at Hoge Raad

Review limited to legal errors and defective reasoning, not fresh fact-finding. Success results in annulment and remission to another court for further handling.

Burden of proof rule

The party asserting a legal consequence bears the burden of proving its facts. The opponent must first raise a substantiated defence before the claimant is required to produce evidence.

Prescription of periodic claims

Claims for periodic payments such as rent or interest prescribe five years after each payment falls due; interruption occurs by acknowledgment, demand, or summons.

Veertiendagenbrief

Statutory fourteen-day notice required before suing a consumer for a money claim, giving the debtor a final opportunity to pay and avoiding immediate litigation costs.

Legality principle

Article 1 of the Criminal Code forbids punishment without a prior statutory basis. It bars retroactive criminalisation and prohibits reasoning by analogy against the accused.

Pre-trial detention review

Detention on remand requires a serious offence and a statutory ground. The investigating judge reviews the lawfulness within three days of arrest and periodically thereafter.

Investigating judge powers

The rechter-commissaris authorises house searches, telecommunications interception, and extended detention, acting as an independent judicial check on the prosecution and police.

Right to remain silent

The suspect need not answer questions and must be warned of this. Statements obtained under impermissible pressure are excluded as evidence at trial.

Criminal prosecution limitation

Serious offences are time-barred after twelve years, lesser offences after six, and minor offences after two; interruption restarts the limitation period.

Defective summons

A summons must state the offence, time, place, and legal qualification. Material defects can lead to nullity of the prosecution or adjournment for repair.

Besluit definition

A written, unilateral legal act by an administrative authority exercising public power. Only such decisions are subject to objection and administrative appeal.

Bezwaar procedure

Mandatory objection to the issuing authority within six weeks of notification. Exhausting it is generally a precondition for appeal to the administrative court.

Fictieve weigering

If an authority fails to decide within the statutory period, the application is deemed refused. This deemed refusal is itself appealable to the administrative court.

Legality review limits

Administrative courts review whether a decision is lawful, not whether it is expedient. They may annul but cannot substitute their own policy choice for the authority's discretion.

Administrative appeal route

Most administrative appeals go to the district court's administrative sector, with further appeal to the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State.

Good administration principles

Careful preparation, adequate motivation, fair play, legal certainty, and proportionality in enforcement. Breach can render a decision annulled even if substantively correct.

Duty of confidentiality

An advocate must keep all information learned in the mandate secret indefinitely, including after the relationship ends; the duty protects client trust and the profession's functioning.

Conflict of interest rule

An advocate may not represent a client where the firm's or a former client's interest materially conflicts with the new client's interest, absent informed consent where permitted.

Third-party funds account

Client money must be held in a separate trust account distinct from the firm's operating account, with records permitting reconciliation and audit at any time.

Disciplinary jurisdiction

The dean and disciplinary tribunal enforce professional rules. Sanctions range from warning and reprimand to suspension and disbarment from the profession.

Fees transparency

Fees must be agreed in writing and explained clearly. Success fees in criminal matters are prohibited, and fees may not depend solely on litigation outcome.

IRAC method

Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion: a structured reasoning format for memoranda and pleadings that keeps legal analysis transparent and easy for a reader to audit.

Summons requirements

A summons must identify the parties, state the claim and legal grounds, and name the competent court. Missing elements can render it defective or void.

Negotiation objective criteria

Anchoring positions in statutes, precedent, or market data increases perceived legitimacy and makes agreements more durable than bare positional bargaining.

BATNA analysis

The best alternative to a negotiated agreement sets the walk-away point. Knowing it helps assess whether a proposed settlement is better than no deal.

Anti-money-laundering duties

Firms must identify and verify clients, monitor transactions, and report unusual transactions to the financial intelligence unit, keeping records for the prescribed period.

Engagement letter content

A written agreement stating scope, fee basis, disbursements, termination, and complaint channels. Unclear scope is a leading cause of fee disputes.

Complaints procedure

Firms must maintain a registered complaints procedure, inform clients of it, and record complaints. Clients may also complain to the dean.

Monism in Dutch law

Self-executing treaty provisions can be invoked directly before Dutch courts, and courts may review statutes against such provisions despite lacking constitutional review.

Teleological interpretation

Interpreting a norm by its purpose and underlying aim. Often decisive for open-textured standards; used alongside grammatical, systematic, and historical methods.