Experience

We hebben JZ Tank Container Fze, een dochteronderneming van Gentco Logistics, bijgestaan bij de verkoop van alle aandelen in TechnoPort B.V., een one-stop shop voor ISO-tankdiensten, aan Heniff Transportation Systems. 

Acting alongside Fried Frank as Dutch local counsel to LumiraDx and FTI Consulting LLP on the sale of its point-of-care diagnostics business to Roche Diagnostics Limited for a headline purchase price of USD 295m. The sale was effected by way of a pre-packaged administration where FTI Consulting LLP acted as administrators.

De twee aandeelhouders van Marine Inspection Logistics International Rotterdam B.V. (MIL) geassisteerd bij de verkoop van hun onderneming aan Red Knot B.V., een dochtervennootschap van Smithers. Lees hier het persbericht.

Assisted a group of funds on the amendment of a €775 m Revolving Credit Facility provided to Hemisphere International Properties B.V. and the related WHOA process for Steinhoff International Holdings N.V. Arguably the largest WHOA process to date in terms of debt and assets involved.

Advising Hunter Douglas on the acquisition of Unilux Nederland B.V., Unilux IP B.V. and Unilux B.V.

Ruben Leeuwenburgh and Mark Mouthaan have advised a retail company on its successful financial restructuring, resulting in a debt reduction from € 63 million to € 15 million.

Representing an educational institution which focuses on offering post-graduate programs in a dispute with a university regarding broken off negotiations.

Representation of a trustee in bankruptcy in proceedings where the trustee holds the former board members of the bankrupt company liable for the deficit in bankruptcy of EUR 40 million.

Representation of an investor in real estate in disciplinary proceedings against the notary and attorneys involved .

Advising Hunter Douglas on the acquisition of Derako Systems B.V.

Defending a wholesale international trade pharmaceutical products company in a high-profile case before the Court of the Hague about infringement of Union trademarks. The proceedings are part of a broader, international dispute between parties, which raises questions about the interaction of foreign and Dutch law. The judgement is published here.

Representing an international wholesale company in A-brand consumer goods in proceedings before the Supreme Court. Read the Supreme Court’s judgement here.

Assisting a real estate investor in legal proceedings before the Enterprise Chamber in a shareholder dispute. The judgment is published here (ECLI:NL:GHAMS:2023:277) and here (ECLI:NL:GHAMS:2023:141).

Representing our client in a case before the Court of Appeal of The Hague concerning unauthorised parallel trade in brand whiskey (Jack Daniel’s). The grounds for appeal were, first, whether a company which was dissolved in 2007, is admissible and entitled to a claim and, second, what amounts of damages or profit remittance was owned to the trademark owner. In an interlocutory judgment, the Court set aside the first instance judgment and ordered the dissolved company to repay the damages received in first instance.

Advising a large property development and construction company in an extensive and multidisciplinary conflict with a municipality.

Marcel Windt has been appointed restructuring expert (herstructureringsdeskundige) by a Dutch court in undisclosed Dutch Scheme (WHOA) proceedings involving of a group of companies aiming to restructure over € 30 million of debt.

Defending one of Europe’s largest forwarding and logistics companies in proceedings before the Court of The Hague concerning the legal position of a logistics service provider in trademark law. The case raises new and challenging questions that potentially have a huge impact on the development of intellectual property law. The case is still pending, but an interlocutory judgment was published in July 2022.

Advising and assisted a large restaurant chain in various post-acquisition disputes with the transfer of shares.

Advising a NASDAQ-listed global logistics company on legislation regarding gender balance within the board of directors.

Advising the shareholders of ExpertDoc B.V. on the sale of the Company to Dedalus Private Equity.

We have acted for a leisure and events company on its financial restructuring resulting in a distressed takeover of the company and a € 30 million to € 15 million debt reduction. The undisclosed Dutch Scheme (WHOA) proceedings were leveraged to reach a consensual deal.

Advised and assisted a specialised healthcare institution regarding various disputes related to the development of real estate for a new care center, including a shareholders dispute.

Co-counsel of a large foreign state in Dutch proceedings to annul and revoke an arbitral award in a long standing, multi-jurisdictional dispute with several Mauritian entities concerning the termination of the lease of a valuable, state-owned satellite spectrum.

Richard le Grand has been appointed as monitor of Vendo Nederland B.V. by the Rotterdam court and has subsequently been appointed as restructuring expert. As monitor he has supervised the public Dutch scheme proceedings and as restructuring expert he is authorised to offer a scheme of composition (restructuring plan) to creditors and to request that the court sanctions the scheme.

At the request of the officials appointed by the Enterprise Chamber, i.e. temporary appointed director, representing an IT company in a corporate inquiry proceeding (enquêteprocedure) before the Enterprise Chamber. We successfully filed a new request, initiating the second phase of the proceedings, in order to have the court rule on mismanagement.

Representation of an accounting and administration office in a shareholder dispute before the Enterprise Chamber.

Advising the board of a large secondary school in various matters, including the Wet normering topinkomens (WNT), the (Standards for Remuneration) Act.

We have acted for a PE portfolio company on the restructuring of a lease resulting in a reoccurring sub-lease vacancy risk reduction and reoccurring cost reduction against financial support of the sponsor and bank. The Dutch Scheme (WHOA) was leveraged to reach a consensual deal.

Advising and assisting a large construction company on new contracts and working relations with independent contractors (so-called zzp’ers).

Representing a Rotterdam based company offering harbour tours in a trademark dispute against a competitor that used the company’s trademark as a Google AdWord. In preliminary relief proceedings, the judge found that the conduct detracted from the origin function of the trademark and ordered the competitor to cease and desist any further infringement. Read the judgment here.

Representing and assisting a multinational chemical company during collective actions and strikes initiated on behalf of the trade unions, during the negotiation for a new collective labour agreement.

Assisting one of the largest Dutch theaters in a dispute with a leading production company.

Advising InnoGenerics on the takeover of the assets of pharmaceutical factory Apotex in the Netherlands.  

Representation of a founder of a hotel group in ongoing proceedings and claims including disciplinary proceedings against the notary involved, who has lodged an appeal against the decision of the court to allow the disciplinary claim of the client in relation to her role in the foreclosure of certain assets. In June 2021 the Court of Appeal confirmed that the notary breached a duty of care. The judgment is published here (ECLI:NL:GHAMS:2021:1062). Disciplinary proceedings against one of the lawyers involved are also pending. The judgment in first instance is published here  (ECLI:NL:TADRSGR:2022:222). Appeal proceedings are pending.

We have acted for Tennor Holding B.V. in the appeal proceedings against its bankruptcy. Tennor has paid all operational creditors and has agreed ‘standstill’ arrangements with all its financial creditors. The Court of Appeal in Amsterdam accepted Tennor Holding B.V.’s argument that herewith the ‘insolvency situation’ was resolved and the bankruptcy was annulled on that basis.

Successfully assisting an IT-company against several claims related to non-compete.

Representation of a subsidiary of a major oil & gas company in a take-over dispute against Korean power giant Chint, where Chint claims that an agreement was concluded on the sale of shares in a subsidiary.

Appointed as liquidator (vereffenaar) of IHC B.V., former owner of Royal IHC, a world leading shipbuilder, Creating the maritime future - Royal IHC

Advising and assisting a large retail group on the dismissal of a board member, including the settlement of claims based on a shareholders’ plan.

Assisting a stevedoring and warehousing company on various matters related to its alcohol and drugs policy, including summary dismissal.

Assisting Stibbe Management in certain aspects of the acquisition of Stork Plastic Machinery. See: Stork IMM Spuitgietmachines | Injection Moulding Machines

Assisting a large IT-company on various company acquisitions and related matters such as pensions, collective labour agreements and independent contracts.

Assisting a sustainable energy joint venture in a contractual dispute with one of its shareholders.

Representing Made in Africa in a take-over dispute against Vlisco. Made in Africa is 50% owned by Kojo Annan (son of the late UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan). Our client takes the position that there is an exclusivity clause in the take-over negotiations and that Vlisco breached its good faith obligations by breaking off negotiations and selling the target company to a third party.

Appointed chairman of SRF, a Dutch Foundation that will distribute the most part of the EUR 1.4 billion Global Settlement as concluded between Steinhoff and a group of over 30.000 qualifying shareholders. See: Steinhoff Global Settlement (steinhoffsettlement.com)

Advising and assisting an international employment agency on international employment matters related to employment agency sector and coordinating various international employment projects.

Assisting a major transportation company in a criminal investigation of an industrial accident.

Distributed the final round of the EUR 300 million dividend to the KPNQwest N.V. creditors, constituting the termination of the bankruptcy of this AEX listed multinational, after nearly 20 years. See: KPNQwest - Wikipedia

Advising and assisting an international employment agency on international employment matters related to employment agency sector and coordinating various international employment projects.

Representing a tree and plant nursery in a dispute involving third-party attachment and the right of retention.

Assisting the non-executive board of New Office Centre in the refinancing and sale of NOCB (ex Staples) to a fund of distressed and hands-on investor Standard Investments. See: Nieuwe eigenaar voor moederbedrijf Staples - RetailNews (retailtrends.nl)

Acting for a high end plant breeder, active in vegetable growing and floriculture, on the amendment and restatement of its Senior Facilities Agreement with one of the leading Dutch banks.

Representing an international package delivery company in a contractual dispute with a credit management service provider.

We have advised Tennor Holding B.V., on its agreement with certain of its material creditors to restructure financial indebtedness of the Tennor Group and certain affiliated entities. The restructuring will include the issuance of EUR 1,450,000,000 First Super Senior Secured Notes by Tennor Holding B.V. and, subject to conditions, the transfer of certain existing equity securities of the Tennor Group which are currently held by creditors and the cancellation, subject to conditions, of existing bonds of the Tennor Group and certain of its affiliates which are currently held by creditors. For more information see: https://tennor.com/tennor-group-agrees-to-restructuring-of-financial-indebtedness-with-material-creditors/

Acting for two shareholders in the restructuring and refinancing of Dümmen Orange, https://emea.dummenorange.com/site/nl. 

Acting for The Coatinc Company, Het oudste familiebedrijf van Duitsland | The Coatinc Company,  active in a.o. surface technologies of hot-dip galvanisation and coating processes in replacing management of certain of its opco’s, and assisting in implementing a strategic re-orientation of Dutch parts of the group.

Representation of a legal expenses insurer, in a post-acquisition dispute against the transferor of shares in relation to an (alleged) misrepresentation of the value of assets.

Succesfully represented an industry-level pension fund in a dispute about the obligatory membership of its pension fund.

Successfully commenced summary proceedings on behalf of a large engineered heavy lifting and transport company before the district court, as a consequence of violations of agreements concerning the protection of (sensitive) business data and non-compete.

Co-counsel of a group company of an issuer – also being a major bondholder – of a bond program to fund its research and operations in the oil and gas industry, in a large dispute on the conversion of bonds and payment of loans.

Acting as bankruptcy trustee of Verolme Holding B.V. and its subsidiaries, the industrial heritage of the world leading shipbuilder as established by legendary enterpreneur Cornelis Verolme. For some publicity about the new start of the activities see: Verolme Moerdijk weer op de been na faillissement

Assisting a heavy lifting and transport company on cases related to maritime employment law and gross misconduct (criminal offences).

Advised the shareholders of Xolv B.V., an intermediary for credit insurance, working capital finance and credit management services, on the sale of a majority stake to Ecclesia.

Acting for a provider of horticulture technology on its financial restructuring, including an amendment of its Senior Facilities Agreement with one of the leading Dutch banks and the structuring of a Subordinated Loan.

Representing an international wholesale company in A-brand consumer goods in proceedings against a seizure of its original Heets products by tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris. The Court of Appeal of The Hague applied the doctrine as developed by the Court of Justice of the EU in the case Class International (18 October 2005, in case C-405/03), by stating that a trademark owner cannot successfully object against the sale and temporary storage of branded goods in transit in the EU/EEA, unless evidence is shown that the goods will necessarily be put in the EU/EEA market. Read the judgment here.

Investigating the policies and the course of affairs within a car dealership as an investigator appointed by Dutch Enterprise Chamber of the Amsterdam Court of Appeals.

Advised ATS Global on the acquisition of Pro-AT, a Dutch company for industrial automation and Perf-iT is Dutch software company that creates, distributes and implements Data Centre Infrastructure Management (DCIM) software globally.

Acting for EYE Control and part of its shareholders in a new round of funding of its expanding cyber security business. See: EYE beschermt ondernemingen - Cybersecurity, Opgelost.

Acting for Gemeente Hoeksche Waard in protecting its interests in the demise of medical equipment supplier HMC.

Successfully defending an international trading company against several employee’s claims, and advising on Covid-19 related issues and claims based on sexual intimidation and misconduct.

Representing the defendant in proceedings relating to the alleged purchase of a superyacht. The judgment is published here (ECL:RBAMS:2021:4531).

Advising and assisting a large printing company on a transfer of undertaking and transfer of employees (TUPE).

Acting for the management participation vehicle in the restructuring of IHC Merwede Holding, one of the largest Dutch shipbuilders, whereby the shares in IHC were acquired by a consortium of strategic parties and investors, supported by the Dutch State. Our instruction commenced early 2019 when we advised the management participation vehicle on the EUR 1.6 billion refinancing of IHC Merwede Holding.

Assisting an international fintech company, which provides the largest local payments network, on various international employment matters.

Advised Van Dijk Beheer on a minority participation in Van Dijk Banket by O2 Capital.

Advised Van Dijk Beheer on a minority participation in Van Dijk Banket by O2 Capital.

Acting for an Isle of Man based private equity investor and majority shareholder of a Netherlands based pharmaceutical company in multiple disputes related to this holding.

Representation of a private equity investor in an M&A-dispute with the seller with regards to the violation of guarantees in the SPA. The judgment is published here (ECLI:NL:RBROT:2021:2566 ).

Advised CIP Capital and People 2.0 on the acquisition of WePayPeople, a Netherlands-based payrolling and employer of record services provider.

Advised Odin Group, a portfolio company of Fortino Capital Partners, on the acquisition of managed service provider Platani Nederland.

Advised ATS Global, a provider of IT solutions for industry and process automation, on a minority participation by Rabo Corporate Investments.

Defending a UK based wholesale company of fast moving consumer goods in litigation proceedings (in appeal of the interim proceedings and in the main proceedings) concerning the seizure of Durex-products by the trademark proprietor in the ports of Spain and the Netherlands, while the goods are goods in transit and not put into circulation in the EU. The cases are still pending.

Representing our client in a principal trademark and unfair competition dispute against a telecommunication provider regarding the vital and material question whether a colour can be monopolized and successfully enforced based on trademark law. 

Acting for Mercon, a service provider for tank and industrial support in maintenance and constructing projects, in optimizing its capital structure.

Acting as referring counsel in appeal proceedings in Germany for the Dutch manufacturer of innovative industrial machine parts in a dispute against its former distributor with regard to trademark infringement and slavish imitation by the former distributor. The case is still pending.

Acting for Quick Parking Holding, a Dutch parking multinational, in its refinancing.

Acting as defense counsel of one of Europe’s largest forwarding and logistics companies in two ongoing trademark cases against two liquor brands (Hennessy and Bacardi). Which could have significant ramifications for the forwarding industry. Both cases involve highly complex questions of IP law regarding the liability of intermediaries with regard to possible trademark infringements by third party-traders. Both matters are pending before the Court of The Hague.

Assisting Fitland Group in stakeholder management after the divestment of its hotel and fitness facilities to Fletcher Group and Basic-Fit.

Negotiating and drafting a distribution agreement for a manufacturer of innovative food products, that are exclusively sold in the leisure branch, for the distribution of the products in foreign territory.

Representation of the former directors of an investment firm in a dispute with a large investor who claims damages in connection with a loss of its investment.

Advised the founders of Quadrant Automatisering B.V., the company behind King Business Software, on the sale of the group to MUIS Software, a portfolio company of Main Capital.

Assisted a group of funds on the refinancing of a €750m Revolving Credit Facility (September 2018) provided to Hemisphere International Properties B.V. and the further implementation thereof (until October 2019). Hemisphere was holding approx. €1,1 billion real estate for Steinhoff International Holding N.V.​

Successfully represented a large housing association against claims based on discrimination.

Advising a major industrial equipment supplier in products and solutions preventing explosions of hazardous substances and heat-tracing, in claw back litigation vis-a-vis a former MT member.

Defending the world’s largest parallel trading group of companies in complex cross-border trademark proceedings against a pharmaceutical company. The main proceedings are still pending before the Court of The Hague.

Acting for one of our clients as claimant in arbitration proceedings before a NAI Tribunal, in respect of various claims under a shareholders agreement, amongst others founded on change of control clauses and non-compete arrangements.

Acting as counsel for claimant WijKopenAuto’s B.V., in the cancellation proceeding against the trademark ‘IK WIL VAN MIJN AUTO AF’ (‘I want to get rid of my car’) of the competitor Dealerdirect B.V. The trademark has been declared invalid by the Benelux Office for the Intellectual Property (the BOIP). The BOIP ruled that the trademark is merely a common advertisement phrase and therefore lacks any distinctive character. Dealerdirect has appealed this decision. Currently, the appeal proceedings before the Benelux Court of Justice are still pending. 

Advised ARS Traffic & Transport Technology, specialist in traffic and transport technology solutions for private and public organisations, implementing a collective reorganization.

Advising the board of an industry-level pension fund in a dispute with its former pension implementing authority.

Assisting Roto Smeets Group, part of a group with a EUR 1 billion turnover and one of the largest Dutch print businesses, in its restructuring and subsequent bankruptcy liquidation.

On behalf of the Associations of Albert Heijn Franchisees, Gall&Gall and Etos submitting observations to the European Commission regarding the Vertical Block Exemption Regulation. The observations and concerns were published recently.

Assisted the Austrian counsel of our client in arbitration proceedings before a VIAC Tribunal in Vienna, in respect of the acceleration of commercial loans.

Assisting the municipality of Enschede in helping Dutch premier league football club FC Twente with its successful bid to survive a period of prolonged financial distress.

Advised a global, US-based speciality chemical company, regarding employment law questions – both in anticipation of the Chapter 11 and signing of the RSA – regarding cross-border restructuring, transfer of undertaking and reorganisation.

Advised a major Dutch defence, shipbuilding and engineering conglomerate, in a management crisis. 

Appointed to effect the administration (and ultimate closure) of the Europe Islamic University of Applied Sciences, a politically sensitive case conducted in full public view.

Acting as defense counsel for a trading company in litigation before the Court of The Hague in a matter touching the heart of trademark law and the free movement of goods. The case was settled amicably between the parties. 

Successfully represented an academic health science centre at the Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Amsterdam against the works council’s appeal.

Finalising the liquidation of the last Dutch Enron entities, following arguably the highest profile collapse in recent history, a mandate in which we were involved since 2004.

Successfully represented Belgica de Weerd B.V. – a well-known Dutch producer and wholesaler of medicines and food products for professional racing pigeons – in cancellation proceedings before the European Office for the Intellectual Property (the EUIPO) after a conflicting trademark was filed in bad faith by a former business partner. Read the judgement here.

Advising Pensioenfonds voor de Houtverwerkende Industrie en Jachtbouw, a sectoral pension fund, in a dispute with one of its categorical members regarding compliance with the collective arrangements.

Advised a Dutch retail operator, servicing global clothing brand Levi-Strauss on an integral change of management.

Successfully represented a wholesale international trade pharmaceutical products company as plaintiff in summary proceedings before the Appeal Court of Leeuwarden. The first instance decision was overruled by the Appeal Court on the basis that the executive bailiff had not acted within the boundaries of the interim judge’s leave and that the first instance interim judge had wrongly granted access to the seized information. Consequently, the Appeal Court ordered the defendants in appeal not to use any of its falsely gained information. The decision was published: ECLI:NL:GHARL:2019:293

Appointed as the administrator of Eye Media, a group of television production companies making programmes for some of the main broadcasting channels, including the popular RTL4.

Advising Dutch healthcare provider Oorwerk on the competition aspects of its acquisition. Our team provided guidance before and during the takeover by Sivantos. The transaction required the approval of the Dutch Healthcare Authority (NZa). Approval was granted on 17 May 2019. The decision and appendices are published on the website of NZa. 

Acted for one of the founders of a hotel group in a dispute with an investor on the enforcement of multi-million security rights in relation to the Benelux easyHotels in inquiry proceedings before the Enterprise Chamber.

Acted for Rabobank on the collection of a receivable, pledged in its favour. In court proceedings in respect of the collection of the receivable, an objection to jurisdiction of the District Court of Amsterdam was filed on the basis that a pledgee should not be allowed to rely on a choice of forum in the underlying agreement between the pledgor and its counterparty. On behalf of Rabobank, we successfully opposed the objection both in the first instance and on appeal.

Initiated appeal proceedings before the Court of Appeal of Arnhem-Leeuwarden on behalf of WijKopenAuto’s B.V. against the provisional judgment of the interim judge of the Court of Overijssel in a trademark law case involving a descriptive trademark of the opposite party. The arguments of WijKopenAuto’s B.V. in first instance were later confirmed by the decision of the Benelux Office for the Intellectual Property (see under ‘June 2019’).  Currently, the appeal proceedings are still pending.

Acted for the former directors of a natural resources conglomerate, headquartered in The Netherlands, as defence counsel in directors’ liability litigation.

Acting for the owner in the acquisition of a private yacht.

Acted as respondent to the cassation lawyer in Supreme Court litigation following the appeal proceedings over copyright infringement on the design of mooncake packaging. In first instance, the court refuted the copyright infringement claims; this was partly overturned by the appeal court’s decision. On 12 October 2018 the advocate-general rendered its opinion to the Supreme Court.

Acted for BB Capital, a Dutch private equity firm, in its dispute with a trustee over the  bankruptcy of De Combi Group. Proceedings before the Rotterdam court after submission of several procedural injunctions.

Acted for a Dutch premier league soccer club in relation to (arbitration about) a transfer payment.

On behalf of the Vereniging Eurospecialité's, drew up a consultation document on the legislative proposal of the Dutch Government to change ERP - external price referencing (Belgium, France, Germany and the UK) by exchanging Germany for Norway in order to lower the prices of pharmaceuticals. Free movement of goods and the Transparency directive on pricing of medicinal products for human use (Directive 89/105/EEG) are at stake.

Acted as legal counsel for a Japanese listed company (net sales of approx. €1.9 billion) in order to avoid the requested reopening of the liquidation process of one of its Dutch subsidiaries.

Acted for ECR - European Care Residences and Resorts with over 500 employees - on the restructuring and integration of its care and hospitality facilities into Blueprint Group.

Acted as legal counsel, advising on (European) competition law in relation to the ambulance market in order to ensure a level playing field in which our clients operate.

Acted for one of the founding shareholders of a sport clothing brand in order to protect its minority stake.

Advised a large nursing and social care provider on various collective claims and successfully represented them in various dismissal cases.

Assisted Dutch retail chain Men at Work in the run-off and divestment of its (60) stores, HQ, stock and brands.

Acted for an Israeli financial institution on the refinancing of a credit facility in The Netherlands.

Acted as legal counsel advising  project developers and municipalities on state aid risks in various complex spatial development projects.

Defended Baars Beheer, an offshore and industrial company, based in Sliedrecht, active in construction, lease and sale of container pontoons and Split Hopper barges. Dispute conducted before the Enterprise Chamber. All charges were refuted and the company’s counter petition to intervene in the supervisory board was accepted.

Advised AMST-Aviation B.V., the aviation services company, on employment issues subsequent to the bankruptcy and subsequent acquisition of a competitor company.

Assisted AMST, an the Austrian family-owned soft- and hardware development company for the aviation industry, to acquire the then insolvent Simteq simulator, software and technology business  for both Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.

Acted for the litigation funding party of a collective action in the automotive industry.

Assisted Parcel International, a Dutch provider of forwarding and logistic services, in negotiating and setting up various joint ventures with international postal and air traffic organisations.

Acted as legal counsel advising on undertakings in the pharmaceutical sector on the application of the ‘Falsified Medicine Directive’ and the ‘Delegated Regulation’ which  has applied since 9 February 2019. The goal of the new regulation is to prevent the entry of falsified medicinal products into the legal supply chain. One aspect is the application of the rules on the Unique Identifier (UDI) in relation to competition law and the need to maintain the level playing field in which our clients operate, on both European and national level.

Acted initially as receiver and subsequently as a Court appointed bankruptcy Trustee in the wind-down of Pyroban Benelux B.V., the Dutch arm of a former Caterpillar business line specialising in explosion protection engine kits, components to engine OEMs and packagers in the oilfield markets. 

Produced an information leaflet and organised in-house training on state aid for both  civil servants and the board of the mayor and aldermen of the municipality of Enschede.  Ensured improvement in knowledge as to state aid for the different policy areas of the municipality.

Advised merchant bank DVB Bank, on employment and employee participation aspects on relocating its headquarters.

Assisted Varova Fashion Group now known as Brand Retail Group (110 stores, 1500 people employed, €140m revenue p/a) and Standard Investment (as a shareholder) in negotiating an Amendment and Restatement relating to a Loan Facility Agreement with senior credit provider HIG WhiteHorse. Varova now focuses on its most successful brands Sissy Boy, Open 32 and Tumble ’n Dry. For news click here.

Assisted a multi-billion African investment bank to recover outstanding bond and note claims in excess of €200m.

Acting for Rabobank in a commercial dispute in the retail/sports sector after successfully defending the bank in first instance and appeal proceedings on complex international private law aspects regarding jurisdiction and the scope of a plegdee’s enforcement powers in an international context.

Defended Telor International Limited, the majority shareholder in Echo Pharmaceuticals B.V., active in production and development of therapeutic  cannabinoids. In a shareholder dispute before the Enterprise Chamber, all charges were refuted. Furthermore, the Enterprise Chamber held that there were sufficient grounds to question the conduct of the petitioning shareholder, which would merit an investigation into this conduct, precisely as we had argued on behalf of Telor. However the Court did not open said investigation in Echo’s interest. For the Court's decision from 23 February 2018 click here.

Represented Orifarm Denmark in the injunction procedure against Allergan Inc. (USA). This was held before the court of first instance in The Hague on the application of the so called Specific Mechanism (in the treaty on the accession of Poland and the other Eastern European Member States to the EU) on imports of Botox - marketed by Allergan in Poland - to The Netherlands. The case was the first in The Netherlands on this issue and raised a number of issues of EU law: more specifically, the scope of the Specific Mechanism and its interpretation in the broader context of the objectives of the internal market and the obligation of national courts in different Member States to prevent conflicting judgments (ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2017:10574).

Represented the CRO before the Enterprise Chamber in a corporate dispute over the restructuring of VADA, a metal recycling business. All charges were refuted. For the Court decision click here.

Acted as defence counsel for Orifarm A/S in summary proceedings concerning the alleged infringement of Allergan, INC’s second medical use claims for its Botox patent. The claims were refuted and Allergan did not appeal the decision.

Advised the board of directors of Home Center International B.V., parent company of a group of home improvement (DIY) retailing companies, with a dominant market position in Israel. We assisted the board as to the company's dealings with the group's lenders and supported certain proceedings before the District Court of Tel Aviv.

Advised the Profireal Group SE board on certain accounting matters. Profireal Group is a multinational company providing credit and financing services in Central and Eastern Europe with consolidated assets of approximately €400m.

Provided strategic advice to a Rotterdam based real estate company for inter alia hospitality services in one of its centrally located, iconic, office and residential buildings on its filing and Trademark Prosecution portfolio. 

Acted as counsel for a claimant of copyright infringement injunctive relief in ex parte proceedings before the provisions judge of the court of Rotterdam.

Advised the Flextra Group shareholders on the group’s restructuring and subsequent buy-out. Flextra is a temporary employment agency in the construction sector with approximately 1500 employees.

Acted as defence counsel for a listed spirits’ wholesaler in a court case on parallel importation of goods into the EEA market and the free circulation of goods within the EEA.

Acted for management and owners of Verkerk Groep (technical installations) in minimising business interruption by selling the business to the French multinational Vinci Energies.

Acted for (approx.) €120m turnover passenger transport organisation regarding its bank and the winding up of an unfortunate foreign investment.

Assisted the management of education administrative support company Vizyr now known as ONS (serving 400 schools and 8000 teachers/educational employees) to attempt to resolve  a commercial contract cancellation with its main customer.

Assisted in the restructuring and refinancing of a heavy lifting and heavy shipping business.

Acted as co-counsel for a former owner/director of one of the largest Dutch flight training schools in defending his interests against the administrators of the training school in a successful business mediation.

Acted as a legal counsel advising various municipalities with a professional football club within their municipal territory on state aid aspects when the municipality is involved with buying, selling, restructuring and building a stadium. The area of state aid often goes with other practice areas, such as restructuring, insolvency and corporate law.

Advised and acted on behalf of Dylan Steel Solutions, a worldwide distributor of steel pipes, fittings, flanges and solid steel bars regarding Dutch labour law requirements for an international closedown.

Acted as the court appointed bankruptcy trustee for the Dutch arm of Fontijne Grotnes group, one of the world’s leading innovative equipment manufacturers and headquartered in Vlaardingen. Fontijne has facilities in Vlaardingen, The Netherlands and in Niles, Michigan, USA, in addition to regional sales and service offices in China, Korea, Japan, India and Russia.

Acting for Telor International Limited in defence against various claims based on alleged breach of contract and tort action before the district court in Amsterdam, all related to dealings of a portfolio company active in the application of cannabis as a medicine. 

Advised on group restructuring and subsequent equity participation in a shipyard.

Acted as counsel in case C-174/15 before the European Court of Justice (judgment 10 November 2016): preliminary questions on the interpretation of the European copyright directive. The questions concerned the remuneration to which authors and publishers are entitled in case of 'e-lending' of eBooks by Dutch libraries.

ECJ 10 November 2016, case C-174/15, Vereniging Openbare Bibliotheken/Pictoright Interpretation Directives 2006/115/EC and 2001/29/EC. E-lending and copyright.

Acted for a family-owned retail chain in relation to participation in the company by a private-equity-owned foreign strategic investor.

Advised a foreign company on its entry to the Dutch food delivery market. Advice given on the company’s intellectual property structure, licensing contracts and terms of use.

Acted as Dutch counsel for (several parts of) a financial institution holding substantial amounts of fixed rate bearer notes issued by PTIF BV and guaranteed by Oi S.A. under their € 7,500,000,000.00 Medium-Term Note Programme.

Defended a leading Dutch pipeline inspection company against a disclosure of evidence claim in interim relief proceedings before the District Court of The Hague. This was  the sole first-instance court in patent cases in The Netherlands. The Dutch defendant was the proprietor of the source code that allegedly infringed claimant’s US patent. All claims were denied. ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2016:11387

Assisted management in both turnaround and balance sheet restructuring of Cleanlease - annual turnover €130m - a group of companies active in leasing and laundering of linens and clothing. The assignment encompassed protection of secured refinancing against an injunction before the Enterprise Division of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal; for the decision click here.

ECJ 7 July 2016, case C-514/15 P, HIT Group / Commission, ECR (2016) p. I
 Competition law. Appeal against T-436/10, prestressed steel.

Successfully advised the municipality of Eindhoven on state aid procedure (article 108(2) TFEU) in respect of the sale-and-lease-back transaction between the municipality and the professional football club PSV. On 4 July 2016, the Commission decided that the measure of the municipality in favour of PSV did not constitute state aid in the meaning of 107(1) TFEU (PbEU 19.10.2016, L282/75).

Acted as court-appointed director of the Centre for the development of logistics and transport in Europe (CETLE), a foundation involved in EU-supported transport related projects.

Acted as bankruptcy trustee of the MS Megan-C, a €20m, 9,530 tonne (DWT) multipurpose vessel, built in 2011 and registered on the Isle of Man.

Acted for Coface and Glencore Grain in relation to (the bankruptcy of) Abengoa Bioenergy Netherlands B.V., a large bio-ethanol producer. Part of the Abengoa Group, a Spanish multinational corporation, it holds companies within the energy, telecommunications, transportation and environment sectors, with 13,341 employees and showing €330m turnover as of March 2019. 
 

Acted for the municipality of Enschede in the rescue of premier division  FC Twente and for the municipality of Venlo in the refinancing of second division football club VVV Venlo.

Advised the board of a Dutch retail organisation, comprising 700 employees, undergoing a reorganisation and collective lay-off.

Acted as counsel to Great American in its tender for the winding-up of V&D and Macintosh.

Acted as bankruptcy trustee of VLM Nederland B.V., a flight crew entity employing 75 people.

Acted as defence counsel to one of the non-executive board members in the D&O settlement with the trustee of the listed and bankrupted small-cap Innoconcepts.

Acted for Erasmus Medisch Centrum in the structuring of one of its private initiatives.

Acted as one of the bankruptcy trustees over Rijnmond Energy, an 820 megawatt and €0.5 billion, base load power plant in the Rotterdam area.

Acted for a general hospital (annual turnover €300m) in the structuring to optimise its private initiatives, both from a tax and a governance perspective.

Defended Orange Financial Lease against the trade name infringement claims of claimant Financial Lease Nederland.

ECJ 16 July 2015, case C-379/14, Top Logistics/Bacardi  
Trademark law.
Exhaustion of rights.
Transit trade of excise goods.

Advised the board of Flynth, an accounting and services firm employing 1300 people (in excess of 60 establishments) in The Netherlands, on employee participation and employment law aspects. This covered a wide-scale, post-merger harmonisation of employment conditions (Flynth).

Acted as counsel before the European Court of Justice in case case C-379/14: preliminary question whether a trademark proprietor can oppose the import of its trademark products and the placing of these goods under a suspension regime on excise duties.
ECJ 16 July 2015, case C-379/14, Top Logistics/Bacardi, ECLI:EU:C:2015:497

Advised BNP Paribas joint venture’s board (Economy Bank) on dealing with employee participation rights and employment law re the winding down and collective dismissal of an Amsterdam based establishment.

Assisted Concordia de Keizer, a certified insurance broker, in redressing some unlawful ‘poaching’ of customers and staff as well as violation of portfolio rights by a competitor.

Acted on behalf of De Viersprong, a highly specialised mental healthcare institute (GGZ) employing over 300 people, in its successful standstill and turnaround negotiations with its financiers, institutional creditors, the WFZ (healthcare guarantee sector fund) and the relevant healthcare insurers.

First-instance court litigation concerning an alleged copyright infringement on behalf of Dutch defendant Mei Sum Food against Maxim’s Caterers Ltd. of Hong Kong. Infringement claims, access to seized documents claims and ancillary claims were refuted.

Acted for Great American in the successful bid for the bankrupted Schoenenreus business.

Represented Nationale-Nederlanden before the European Court of Justice in case C-51/13) on the interpretation of EU directives on life insurance and pre-contractual information requirements. The EU Court ruled in favour of Nationale-Nederlanden on 29 April 2015.

Assisted GEA, a German mid-cap, on designing centralised employee (1500) participation, lay-offs and a transformation of the Dutch group of companies.

Acted for Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (Q8) on the disposal of a refinery, on employee participation and employment law related aspects of a pre-transaction reorganisation.

Represented a Dutch party organisation in its injunction order against defendant’s use of the trade name, domain name and Facebook page for “S’Oranje” in relation to King’s Day festivities under that name (ECLI:NL:RBROT:2015:2166).

Represented a certification institute in a defamation case against a press medium. Defendant was ordered immediately to cease and desist from publishing news articles about claimant and was ordered to remove and correct the disputed blogs on its website.

Acted for Alteri in the bidding process for bankrupted retailer Mexx.

Acted as envisaged bankruptcy trustee/prepack administrator for healthcare institute STMG (3000 people employed), contributing to its entirely solvent liquidation and divestment process within a four months’ timeframe.

Appointed on an annual basis as trustee of OW Bunker and OW Global Trading, two OW Bunker subsidiaries with an annual turnover of €1.5 billion. OW Bunker is one of the world's biggest players in oil bunkering.

Litigation before the interim judge of the Dutch EU trademark court concerning the seizure of infringing goods in relation to the Anti-Piracy Regulation. Represented  the defendant and the claim to have the seizure lifted was refuted.

Acted for the lessor and owners of bankrupted Nedstaal, one of the world’s leading production facilities of steel and ball bearings for the automotive manufacturing industry.

Acted for an educational institute to address fundamental strategic issues.

Acted as silent trustee over a financially regulated company active in the leisure industry to oversee its refinancing for the foreseeable future.

Acted for the insured contractor in relation to the clean-up of a large oil spill.

Advised an ad hoc committee of bondholders on Dutch law aspects of an international restructuring.

Engaged to assist a parental initiative in successfully restarting a failed yet unique day care centre, being the oldest one in Rotterdam.

Acted on a pro bono basis to help an employees' initiative to restart iconic Rotterdam bookstore 'Donner'.

Acted as trustees in the bankruptcy of KPNQwest N.V., a top 25 AEX listed telecommunication company with a €2.2 billion deficit, in a lawsuit against its parent, joint venture partners Qwest Communications and KPN and certain executive and non-executive directors. After years of litigation on both sides of the Atlantic, the matter was settled for €260m, possibly the largest D&O liability settlement on Dutch territory to date.

Acted for Attero, the largest Dutch recycling and disposal company in Holland, in various commercial and insolvency related dealings with both subcontractors and a joint venture partner.

Assisted Excent, a chain of dental laboratories, on employment issues.

Acted in a bond restructuring for the management of a Dutch holding company of a power electronics and PV inverter manufacturer.

ECJ 7 November 2013, case C-518/11, UPC / gemeente Hilversum, ECLI:EU:C:2013:709
 Telecom and competition law. 
Reference from the Amsterdam court of appeal; acting for city of Hilversum.

Represented a Dutch leisure boats’ manufacturer in appeal court litigation concerning copyright infringement of a competitor’s designs. In first instance and on appeal the claims were refuted.

General Court 16 September 2013, T-373/10, Villeroy & Boch and Others / Commission
Competition law. Defence (acting for the European Commission) in the appeal against the Commission’s decision (Article 101TFEU) in the bathroom fittings-case.

Acting as co-trustee in the restart of lingerie brand Marlies Dekkers.

Acted for a privately owned outplacement and re-employment company on loan term negotiations with its lenders.

Advised a global player in the oil and chemical services industry, successfully steering the company clear of insolvency.

Advised the shareholders of a biogas plant on the various restructuring options for the company.

Assisted High Speed Alliance and Dutch National Railways to reach a temporary replacement for the Fyra line to Brussels.

Assisted a Dutch credit insurer in structuring the reinsurance of some of its risks.

Assisted Allianz in reaching a settlement in international (Canadian) litigation involving a Dutch insolvent insured party.

Advised NedCar in its successful rescue through a deal with BMW and VDL.

Advised TBI Holdings on supply issues caused by the insolvency of a subcontractor to one of its business units.

Acted for Dutch Railways in the execution of its divestment in Syntus.

Acted for the Dutch part of the US Chapter 11 restructuring of ATP Oil & Gas, a Houston-based developer of oil and natural gas in the Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea.

Acted as lead counsel for TBI Holdings, a major Dutch construction company, in the successful acquisition of mid-size bankrupted building company Groothuis.

CFI 1 July 2012, case T-206/10, Vesteda / Commission State aid. 
Legality of the Commission’s decision on the Dutch social housing system.

Acted for the Pink & Nelson management in the successful governance stabilisation of its business.

Assisted Odfjell, a global sea transport and tank terminal group listed in Oslo, in dealing with trade unions and a strike, in addition to a contentious reorganisation and employee lay-off of the Dutch activities following a safety shutdown.

Acted for Dutch National Railways in the restructuring of the HSL-Zuid (high speed) activities.

Acted as counsel to a listed Dutch multinational, active in the field of nutritional supplements, to assure continuity in the services of one of its key suppliers.

Acted as bankruptcy trustee in the liquidation of Atta Makelaardij, historically one of the larger, regional real estate agents.

Acted for Pan-Invest as the management of the Dutch holdco in the restructuring of a large Romanian Real Estate Fund.

Acted for the management of the Dutch finance company of Q-Cells in the restructuring (and sale) of the German solar energy equipment producer Q-Cells SE, a company with, at the time, an annual turnover of €1 billion and employing 2,000 people.

Acted as Dutch counsel to the REIT’s facility agent holding parts of the Karstadt Quelle real estate portfolio.

Acted for Gemeente Amsterdam to resolve issues for Stedelijk Museum following the bankruptcy of building company Midreth.

Acted as liquidator in the solvent liquidation of one of the largest Spanish co-operative firm’s holding companies.