Our office makes every effort to provide you with the best possible service. However, you may still be dissatisfied with a specific aspect of our services.

Our office has a complaints procedure. If you are dissatisfied with the quality of our services or with the invoice, we request that you first submit your concerns to your own lawyer. You can also contact our complaints officer: Sander Groen. We will work with you to find a solution as quickly as possible. We will always confirm this solution to you by email or in writing.

Office Complaints Officer: Mr. S.M. Groen (groen@kroesadvocaten.nl)

If you believe the internal complaints procedure is unsatisfactory, you can submit your complaint to the Dispute Resolution Committee for the Legal Profession (Geschillencommissie Advocatuur) (Dutch), with which our firm is affiliated. However, this is only possible after you have submitted your objections to our firm. Also if our firm has not responded to your complaint in writing within four weeks of receiving it, you can contact the Dispute Resolution Committee for the Legal Profession.

You can submit your complaint to the Dispute Resolution Committee for the Legal Profession up to twelve months after the date of our firm's written response.

The Dispute Resolution Committee for the Legal Profession issues a decision in the form of an arbitral ruling for corporate clients or a binding opinion for private clients.

The Disputes Committee for the Legal Profession is authorized to adjudicate complaints regarding the quality of a lawyer's services and the amount of the invoice.

You may also believe you are entitled to compensation. The Disputes Committee for the Legal Profession is also authorized to adjudicate claims for damages up to a maximum of €25,000. Higher claims for damages can only be submitted to the Disputes Committee if you expressly limit the claim to a maximum of €25,000 and waive the excess amount in writing.

We can submit unpaid invoices to the Disputes Committee for collection.

The Disputes Committee will handle the case in accordance with the Disputes Committee regulations for the Legal Profession, which are in effect at the time you submit your complaint to the Disputes Committee. The decision of the Disputes Committee for the Legal Profession is not subject to appeal.

If you cannot reach an agreement with the lawyer or the firm, you can also submit your complaint to the doyen (‘deken’) of Bar Association in the region where your lawyer practices. The doyen is a lawyer who oversees all lawyers in a specific region (district). The doyen will explore options for resolving the problem, for example, through mediation.

The doyen follows the guidelines for dealing with complaints within the Bar Association. Depending on the subject and complexity of the complaint, the doyen may need some time to complete the investigation. At the end of the investigation, the doyen can inform you and the lawyer of their opinion on the complaint. A doyen cannot make a binding decision on your complaint.

To file a complaint, you can use the form available on the Dutch Bar Association website (Dutch only). You must clearly describe your complaint.

Only the disciplinary judge (‘tuchtrechter’) can issue a final decision on your complaint. Therefore, the handling of your complaint does not end once the doyen’s investigation is complete. You can request the doyen to refer the complaint to the disciplinary judge.

The Disciplinary Board (‘Raad van Discipline’) is the disciplinary judge. It can impose various measures on lawyers who have not complied with the rules: a warning, a reprimand, a fine, suspension from practicing law, and disbarment. The Disciplinary Board cannot, in principle, determine compensation; this can only be done through civil proceedings.

If you disagree with the Disciplinary Board's decision, in some cases you can appeal to the Disciplinary Court in The Hague. Your lawyer can also appeal. The Court will review your case and determine whether the Disciplinary Board made the correct decision or whether the decision needs to be modified.