Point Law is a limited under Maltese Law and registered at the Malta Business Registry, number C94399. In these General Terms and Conditions, the “Contractor” is to be understood at all times as Point Law Ltd. and includes Dr M.M. Broer-Blokland, who is admitted to the Dutch Bar in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, as an equivalent to the Contractor. The ”Client” is to be understood as the natural legal entity who has given an assignment to the Contractor or to an individual lawyer of the Contractor, or for whom the Contractor or an individual lawyer of the Contractor carries out or has carried out work.

Assignment and General Terms and Conditions

These General Terms and Conditions are applicable to all assignments given to and all work carried out by or on behalf of the Contractor and all related legal relationships. These General Terms and Conditions were also drawn up for the benefit of those who are employed by the Contractor. All assignments are accepted and carried out by the Contractor. This also applies if it is the intention of the Client to have the assignment carried out by a specific person. Articles 7:404, 7:407, 7:409 and 7a:1680 Dutch Civil Code are not applicable.

Fulfilment of the assignment

When carrying out the assignments given to the Contractor, the Contractor shall exercise the due care of a professional contractor. The Contractor has a best efforts obligation towards its clients and does not guarantee the accomplishment of the intended result. The fulfilment of assignments given to the Contractor shall exclusively be effected for the benefit of the Client. Third parties cannot derive any rights from advice given by the Contractor and work carried out by the Contractor. During the fulfilment of assignments, the Contractor is authorised to engage third parties, including barristers and bailiffs and, after consultation with the Client, experts and external consultants. In case of the engagement of third parties the Contractor shall exercise due care.

Termination

The Client is at all times entitled to terminate its assignment to the Contractor except in case of an assignment at a fixed price, or if it becomes evident otherwise that it was not the intention of the parties that the Client could terminate the assignment. The Contractor may only terminate an assignment if it can no longer be reasonably expected to continue handling the case, if there is a conflict of interests, or if the Client is in arrears in its payment. Termination of an assignment by the Client or by the Contractor has no consequences for the liability to pay the remuneration for the work carried out by the Contractor and its expenses incurred.

Remuneration, disbursements and advance payments

The invoice consists of remuneration, disbursements, VAT exempted ex Art 11 VAT Act. Unless agreed otherwise, the Client owes the Contractor a remuneration amounting to the number of worked hours multiplied by the hourly rate applied by the Contractor, at the moment Euro 240,00 per hour. This hourly rate is stated in the engagement letter to the Client. The Contractor reserves the right to adjust these rates every year. In the event of extreme urgency, the Contractor may multiply the rates for such rush assignment by one and a half. Disbursements are Compensation of specified expenses such as court registry fees, travel and hotel expenses, appraisal costs, et cetera. The Client owes the Contractor an advance payment for what it is entitled to. Such advance payment shall be set off against every invoice.

Invoices and suspension of work

As a rule, the Contractor sends an invoice each month. Complaints about invoices must be submitted within fourteen days after the date of invoice on penalty of lapse. If the Client fails to pay an invoice in time, the Contractor is entitled to suspend its work and to terminate the assignment, after notifying the Client in writing. The Contractor does not accept liability for any damage caused by suspension of the work on this ground. The Contractor is entitled to settle outstanding invoices with monies that it, for any reason, holds or manages for the Client.

Interest and debt collection charges

Except for a justified complaint, each invoice must be paid within thirty days after the date of invoice, for lack of which the Client shall be in default without requiring any notice of default and statutory interest shall be due as from the ultimate payment date. In the event of debt collection measures, all reasonably incurred collection charges in as well as out of court shall also be payable. When the Client is a natural person the ‘Staffel Buitengerechtelijke Incassokosten’ as published on rechtspraak.nl is applicable. When the Client is a legal entity, including one-man businesses and general partnerships, the legal and non-legal expenses will amount to 15% of the payable amount with a minimum of EUR 45.00.

Third-Party Funds

Point Law Ltd does not use a bank account for trust of third-party funds. In appropriate situations Point Law Ltd will, in consultation with the Client, search for an alternative provision through third parties.

Liability

All and any liability of the Contractor is limited to the amount paid out in the relevant case under the professional liability insurance at Aon Risk Solutions in Rotterdam, the Netherlands (or any other in force at that time) including the deductible borne by the Contractor in connection with that insurance. Those who work for Point Law Ltd are not personally liable. Should for whatever reason no insurance payment be made under the aforementioned insurance, the liability of the Contractor shall be limited to five times the remuneration invoiced by the Contractor to the Client in the calendar year in which the damage has occurred in the relevant case, up to a maximum of EUR 25,000. The engagement of third parties, if any, is at all times at the expense of the Client. The Contractor is authorised to accept any limitations of liability of the third parties that it has engaged on behalf of the Client, without any prior consultation with the Client. The Contractor does not accept liability for any failure to perform on the part of such third parties. All and any liability towards the Contractor shall lapse if not claimed before the competent court within one year after the date on which the party involved became aware – or could reasonably have been aware – of the existence of such liability.

Archiving

After a case is terminated, and at the request of the Client, all original documents in the dossier originating from the Client shall be returned to the Client, and then the remaining dossier shall be archived during a period of seven years. Subsequently, it shall be destroyed.

Miscellaneous

The Contractor’s complaints procedure applies to all activities carried out by the lawyers of Point Law Ltd and is published Kantoorklachtenregeling Point Law Ltd. Upon first request, a copy of the complaints procedure will be sent to the Client. The services of the Contractor are governed by Dutch law, unless explicitly agreed otherwise in writing. Any disputes with respect to an assignment given to the Contractor shall exclusively be brought before the Court of Rotterdam unless explicitly agreed otherwise in writing. Due to applicable regulations (including Prevention of Money Laundering and Funding of Terrorism Regulations, AMLD etc), Contractor is obligated to establish the identity of a Client, and under certain circumstances to report unusual transactions to the authorities. These terms and conditions are available in Dutch and in English. In the event of any dispute with respect to the contents or the intention of these General Terms and Conditions, the Dutch version shall have precedence. The Contractor is entitled to amend or supplement these General Terms and Conditions. Any change and/or supplement shall be binding upon the Client, but not before the Client has been notified thereof in writing.