artikelen 

Florent kondigt met trots aan dat Jean-Pierre van Leeuwe per 1 mei 2020 is toegetreden als counsel Ondernemingsrecht. Jean-Pierre heeft ruim 35 jaar ervaring in de behandeling van M&A, private equity transacties en corporate governance vraagstukken.

Lees hier het persbericht.

Florent is proud to announce that Jean-Pierre van Leeuwe has joined Florent as a counsel in our M&A practice per 1 May 2020. Jean-Pierre has over 35 years’ experience on M&A, private equity transactions and corporate governance matters.

Click here to read the press release.

Jurjen Tuinman and Tim de Booys wrote the first academic article on the consequences of the corona pandemic for commercial leases in the Netherlands. The article will be published in the April 2020 issue of the leading Dutch journal WR, Journal for Tenancy Law. In the publication, the following questions are addressed:

Is the tenant entitled to suspend rent payment in case of closure due to the corona crisis?

The authority to suspend the payment obligations is excluded in most commercial leases. Such exclusion is permitted. As a rule, tenants are not authorised to suspend rent payments.

Is the tenant entitled to a rent reduction as a compensation for the government measures against the corona pandemic?

A tenant is entitled to claim a proportionate rent reduction if the corona crisis constitutes a defect. In principle, the government measures in relation to the corona pandemic qualify as a defect in the meaning of section 7:204(2) of the Dutch Civil Code. However, it is allowed to exclude this right in commercial leases, and in such leases the right to a rent reduction is generally excluded as a matter of course. Most commercial landlords will be able to rely successfully on the exclusion of the right to a rent reduction.

What other remedies does a tenant have?

First, the tenant may cease operations temporarily. Second, the tenant may claim amendment of the lease due to unforeseen circumstances. Although high bars apply, we consider a successful reliance on unforeseen circumstances to be possible if, for example, relatively smaller tenants have been unable to use the leased property altogether due to mandatory closure. Third, landlord and tenant must take each other’s legitimate interests into account. This may require the parties to enter into negotiations in which the parties might have to make concessions in departure from the initial agreement.

Click here for the full article.

The Legal 500 has published its rankings for Europe, Middle East & Africa 2020 (EMEA). Florent is proud that all our focus areas and moreover 10 lawyers have received outstanding rankings and excellent reviews.

We are grateful to all our clients and peers for their trust and recommendations.

Practice areas:

• Restructuring and Insolvency: Florent is a small law firm with an enormous footprint in the insolvency market, especially retail, which it serves with high-quality lawyers'. It is equally noted for having 'many experienced insolvency professionals to cope with large, high-pressure bankruptcies'. Leading individual Hanneke De Coninck, always has a pragmatic and effective approach, but with a very human touch. Very knowledgeable in the legal field‘. ‘Kees van de Meent is focused and results driven. Very nice to work with, also very realistic‘.

• Dispute Resolution: Commercial Litigation: The team is involved in a wide range of corporate and commercial litigation, including conflicts between shareholders, management boards and supervisory boards, as well as post-M&A disputes, commercial contracts, financing and the liability of managing directors and supervisory directors. Yvette Borrius and Chris Jager lead the group. In 2019 the corporate litigation team saw the arrival of senior associate Emille Buziau from Houthoff. ‘We were impressed by the responsiveness of the team and the in-depth analysis of the potential options included in the initial advice.‘

• Commercial, Corporate and M&A: ‘Florent’s entrepreneurial' team is headed up by the seasoned Pieter van den Brink and Matthijs Brons, and specializes in mid-market transactions. Clients range from national and international large and medium-size companies, shareholders, directors and investors. The practice advises on the full range of corporate and commercial matters including private equity investments, joint ventures and buyouts. Katharina Bottenberg and Hester van Woudenberg joined the team from Loyens & Loeff and De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek respectively. ‘They are the most entrepreneurial firm in Amsterdam. Always the best value for money and most dedicated people.’

• Fraud and White collar Crime: category TOP-TIER-Firm. Florent is focused on representing the victims of civil fraud, with matters including fraud litigation, cross-border asset recovery, bankruptcy proceedings, and fraud investigations. The team is involved in many international cases, as part of the ICC's FraudNet network, securing referrals from a number of foreign firms and clients. The practice's capability in fraud investigations is bolstered by its employment of a forensic accountant, allowing it to take a leading role in high-profile cases. Florent has an excellent fraud and white-collar crime department with a unique focus on white collar crime in combination with international asset tracing and recovery.‘ Key name is the 'highly knowledgeable' Kees van de Meent. 

Leading individual

Hanneke De Coninck is listed in the elite "Leading individuals" list for Restructuring and insolvency, The Legal 500 Europe, Middle East & Africa 2020's guide to outstanding lawyers in Europe, Middle East & Africa.

For more information see Legal500.

Voor een uitgebreide juridische analyse over de coronacrisis en verhuur van bedrijfsruimte lees het artikel “De coronapandemie en huur van bedrijfsruimte: don't believe the hype” van Tim de Booys en Jurjen Tuinman.

Gepubliceerd in WR, Tijdschrift voor Huurrecht en op Kluwer-internetpagina Corona en Recht.

Click here for English translation.

De minister van Milieu en Wonen heeft op donderdag 26 maart 2020 een nieuwe maatregel aangekondigd die van belang is voor tijdelijke huurcontracten van woonruimte. Tijdelijke huurcontracten die tijdens de Coronacrisis aflopen kunnen voor een tijdelijke periode worden verlengd.  Een spoedwetgeving is in de maak om dit mogelijk te maken. Brancheorganisaties, waaronder Aedes, Vastgoed Belang, IVBN, Kences, VLBN, de Woonbond en LSVb juichen dit toe.

Sinds 1 juli 2016 is het mogelijk om woonruimte tijdelijk te verhuren. Zelfstandige woonruimte voor een periode van maximaal twee jaar, en onzelfstandige woonruimte, zoals bij kamerverhuur, voor een periode van maximaal vijf jaar. Daar zijn strikte spelregels aan verbonden. Zo moet de verhuurder maximaal drie maanden en minimaal één maand vóórdat de tijdelijke huurovereenkomst eindigt, de huurder hierover schriftelijk informeren. Stuurt de verhuurder deze schriftelijke kennisgeving niet of niet op tijd uit, dan wordt de tijdelijke huurovereenkomst verlengd en omgezet naar een reguliere huurovereenkomst (met huur(prijs)bescherming) voor onbepaalde tijd.

Het is voor het overige nog onbekend wat de spoedwet voor veranderingen teweeg gaat brengen. Voor nu is het verstandig om de hiervoor bedoelde kennisgevingen te blijven versturen als verhuurder, ter voorkoming dat het tijdelijke karakter van de huurovereenkomst eventueel verloren gaat. Echter, zowel huurders als verhuurders kunnen er alvast rekening mee houden dat de spoedwet waarschijnlijk meebrengt dat de tijdelijke huurovereenkomst voor de duur van de coronacrisis wordt verlengd.

Meer weten?

Neem dan contact op met Tim de Booys of Su Chun Lin.