Supreme Court Litigation

+ 11 other experts

Winning the case at the highest level

Part of our DNA

De Brauw has litigated before our highest court since 1871. Our practice is synonymous with the specialist legal and strategic skills, and the detailed and rigorous approach, that these type of cases need. We handle Dutch Supreme Court litigation in all areas of civil and administrative law, with corporate litigation, class actions, employment and intellectual property being our focus.

Challenging the status quo

What happens in society is relevant in Supreme Court cases, as changes in public opinion often influence the law. A constant critique of the status quo is at the core of our litigators' approach. Our 360-degree perspective has led to our forming part of many ground-breaking decisions that touch upon all facets of society.

Setting strategy from the ground up

When taking on a Supreme Court case, we act as the client’s Supreme Court counsel throughout the appeal, working in close consultation with the lawyers who handled the matter during the fact-finding stages. In some cases, we may get involved while the matter is still winding its way in the lower courts when an appeal to the Supreme Court is being contemplated or anticipated. In this scenario, we typically begin by assessing our client’s options of appealing an unfavourable lower court decision, or the possibilities of successfully defending the matter.

Tailored fee arrangements and quick scan

We believe everyone should have access to a Supreme Court review of their case. To support this, we can tailor fee arrangements that reflect the client's financial situation, as well as the impact of the case itself. Recognising the role we can play in society, we have taken on pro bono cases and represented legal-aid clients before the Supreme Court where our expertise was needed.

If you are unsure if obtaining an opinion on cassation as required by the lawyers rules of conduct is the way to go, we can start the process by doing a quick scan and discuss with you whether that would be advisable based on our first reading of the lower court decision. We will then also be estimating related costs. If after reading the quick scan you would like us to issue a detailed opinion on a Supreme Court appeal, our opinion will estimate the costs of starting proceedings before the Supreme Court or of submitting a defence.

Contact us

If you would like to know what we can do for you, please get in touch with our Supreme Court Litigation team at supremecourtlitigation@debrauw.com, or reach out to the individual experts listed on this page.

Recent Matters

7 October 2022

Supreme Court: provisions on early repayment of fixed interest rate mortgages valid and binding

On 7 October 2022, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands dismissed the appeal of a former customer of Rabobank against a judgment by the Amsterdam Court of Appeal (judgment). On the same day, it also dismissed similar complaints against appellate court judgments brought by (former) customers of Volksbank N.V. (judgment) and ABN AMRO N.V. (judgment). The judgments are available in Dutch only.
24 December 2021

De Brauw secures Supreme Court win for Republic of Kazakhstan

On 24 December 2021, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands ruled in favour of the Republic of Kazakhstan, by annulling an enforcement order granted by the Amsterdam Court of Appeal in 2020. The contested order had allowed the opposing party to enforce a USD 500 million investment arbitration award issued by a Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC) panel. In the Supreme Court proceedings, De Brauw successfully argued that the Amsterdam Court of Appeal did not have subject-matter jurisdiction to decide on the request for an enforcement order against the Republic of Kazakhstan. The Supreme Court also reversed the Court of Appeal's decision to grant the enforcement order, because this decision was given by a court that lacked jurisdiction to do so. The Supreme Court judgment can be found here (in Dutch).
5 November 2021

Supreme Court confirms Tribunal's jurisdiction in Yukos case

On 5 November 2021, the Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in the setting-aside proceedings against the Yukos Awards. Siding with the former majority shareholders of Yukos, the Supreme Court rejected all the Russian Federation's complaints regarding the Tribunal's and the Hague Court of Appeal's interpretation and application of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), thereby confirming the Tribunal's jurisdiction. The Supreme Court remanded the case to the Amsterdam Court of Appeal to further assess the Russian Federation's allegations of fraud in the arbitration, which the Hague Court of Appeal had dismissed on procedural grounds.
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Considering an appeal to the Supreme Court?

We can help you weigh your options and decide. We will scan the matter to highlight where the possible points of appeal are, indicate any potential defence(s), and comment on your likelihood of success.

Request an assessment

Having excellent Supreme Court barristers available in all stages of proceedings gives a great advantage.

Legal 500, 2021

Insights

28 October 2022

Supreme Court: provisions on early repayment of fixed-interest mortgages valid and binding

In following the Advocate General's advisory opinion, the Supreme Court recently reaffirmed several appellate court judgments stemming from cases brought by bank customers in relation to provisions in the banks' general terms and conditions that require customers to compensate banks for the early repayment of their fixed-interest mortgages. The Supreme Court clarified that the transparency of the provisions is a relevant factor, but not a decisive one when assessing the validity of these provisions.
27 June 2022

Dutch Supreme Court: courts of appeal free to set and enforce page limits

In 2021, the four courts of appeal in the Netherlands set page limits for civil matter legal briefs - 25 pages for statements of appeal and defence, and 15 pages for other briefs. In complex and high-stake cases, parties can ask for more pages. Following a legal challenge by a group of lawyers, the matter was referred to the Supreme Court for a preliminary ruling.
20 June 2022

Deliveroo riders in Netherlands are employees, according to Advocate General

On 17 June 2022, Advocate General (AG) De Bock issued an advisory opinion in a fundamental case between FNV, the largest Dutch trade union, and online meal delivery company Deliveroo. In a ruling contested by Deliveroo, the Amsterdam Court of Appeal had previously decided that FNV had a cause of action and that Deliveroo riders qualify as employees despite having entered into contracts for services - as independent contractors - with the company. According to the AG, the court of appeal's decision was correct, and should be upheld by the Supreme Court. Although the Supreme Court is not bound by the opinions of the AG, it does follow them in most cases, putting FNV in a favourable position. The Supreme Court's decision is expected in late December 2022.