Country Desks
News
18 December 2025
WHOA SPECIAL – 4. TEIL
Das WHOA-Verfahren gibt Unternehmen in finanzieller Krise die Chance, ihre Schulden zu restrukturieren und so die Insolvenz lebensfähiger Unternehmen zu vermeiden. In den letzten vier Jahren hat sich das WHOA-Verfahren als flexibles Instrument für grenzüberschreitende Restrukturierungen bewährt, sowohl eigenständig als auch in Kombination mit ausländischen Verfahren wie dem US-amerikanischen „Chapter 11“ oder dem englischen „Scheme of Arrangement“ bzw. dem „Part 26A Restructuring Plan“.
News
14 October 2025
Wagevoe
Since 1 January 2025, a new act was introduced for shareholder disputes: the ‘Act amending the dispute resolution rules and clarifying the admissibility requirements for inquiry proceedings’ (in short: Wagevoe). Before 2025, anyone who wanted to buy out a co-shareholder or leave a company could usually expect a long process involving various procedures. As my colleague Rick Dijksterhuis explained at the time in his earlier contribution on this bill, the legislator had one clear goal: to make the resolution of shareholder disputes faster, simpler and more practical. In practice, we see that this has an impact on the way shareholders litigate.
News
13 August 2025
Update on the Vifo Act
The Netherlands' economic security policy is constantly evolving. In this context, the Investments, Mergers and Acquisitions (Security Screening) Act (Vifo Act) has been in force since 1 June 2023. The Act provides for a security assessment on the basis of which certain investments, mergers and acquisitions must be approved in advance by the Minister of Economic Affairs. For more information about the content and operation of the Vifo Act, please refer to my previous posts in this respect. In this news item, I provide an update on the Vifo Act.
News
15 July 2025
ACCESS OF UBO REGISTER FOR THE NOTARIAL PROFESSION IS AROUND THE CORNER
Last June, an agreement was reached and signed between the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (“CoC”) and the Dutch Royal Notarial Professional Organization (“RNPO”), to again allow civil law notaries in the Netherlands direct access to the UBO register.
News
13 June 2025
General terms and conditions: no absolute shield against liability
General terms and conditions are a key instrument for many entrepreneurs aiming to minimize legal risks. These documents typically contain clauses on liability, complaint periods, payment terms and governing law.
News
27 May 2025
The moratorium under the WHOA
The Act on the court approval of private restructuring plans (Wet Homologatie Onderhands Akkoord, abbreviated as WHOA) makes it easier for a company in financial distress to sit down with its creditors and shareholders and make arrangements to restructure its debts. The annual report over 2023 of the group of specialised judges and staff tasked with implementing the WHOA (the WHOA Pool) shows, among other things, that in 2023, the moratorium (afkoelingsperiode) was the most frequently requested measure of all the restructuring tools offered by the WHOA.