International law  in this day and age.

Supreme court litigation is a unique process within the Dutch legal system. It is not about a complete re-trial of the facts, but about whether the law has been correctly applied. The cassation lawyer draws up a written argument, the so-called ‘ supreme court litigation appeal’, in which the points on which the court of appeal's ruling is contrary to the law are made clear. The Supreme Court then assesses whether the complaint is well-founded. If the Supreme Court finds that a mistake has indeed been made, it may set aside the judgment and refer the case back to another court for reassessment.

The Supreme Court is the highest court in the Netherlands and its main task is to ensure unity and legal certainty in the administration of justice. The Supreme Court does this by checking whether lower courts have applied the law correctly. However, the Supreme Court does not review all aspects of the case. It deals only with legal and procedural questions. If the Supreme Court concludes that mistakes have been made, it can:

• Set aside the judgment and refer the case back to another court for a new judgment.
• Dispose of the case itself, although this is rare. Supreme court litigation proceedings therefore require a specialised approach and a deep understanding of the law.

Giving a supreme court litigation opinion is a time-consuming business:

• the case file must be read through
• case law must be researched
• an analysis of the judicial decisions must be made

Quick Scan

In addition to providing a comprehensive opinion, we offer clients the option of the Quick Scan analysis, in which only the court's final decision is read and a preliminary opinion on the chances in supreme court litigation is given. This Quick Scan analysis can be carried out in a shorter time than a full opinion. As a result, the costs are also limited. A Quick Scan need not, incidentally, stand in the way of a further comprehensive opinion.

Please note!

You remain personally responsible for timely filing an appeal in supreme court litigation with the registry of the court of appeal.

In ordinary proceedings on the merits, the supreme court litigation period is three months from the day of the judgment. But the cassation period in summary proceedings is shorter, only eight weeks. And in some special cases, the period is even more limited.

Obviously, a cassation opinion should not be issued only just before the expiry of the cassation period. There should be enough time left for seeking a second or even third opinion. This is another reason not to submit a case for an opinion only shortly before the deadline expires.

Supreme court litigation costs: In supreme court litigation, we charge a standard hourly rate, but fixed fee agreements can be made in consultation.

Quick Scan supreme court litigation advice: A Quick Scan analysis is carried out in all cases on the basis of a fixed price.
On addition: supreme court litigation proceedings can be done on addition, for clients with an income that qualifies.