General Terms and Conditions

Article 1: Definitions

In these terms and conditions the following terms shall have the following meanings:

The contractor: Sparta Legal B.V. (hereinafter referred to as: “Sparta”), which undertakes the work specified below;

The client: the natural or legal person, who seeks the assistance of Sparta;

The engagement shall be understood to mean the work, to be determined by mutual agreement between the client and Sparta, which must be performed by Sparta and the conditions under which it must be performed.

Article 2: General

All provisions of these terms and conditions shall apply between the parties unless otherwise stated in writing.

The agreement is entered into for an indefinite period unless the content, nature or intent of the order given shows that it is entered into for a definite period.

The client with whom a contract was once concluded on the basis of these terms and conditions, is deemed to have tacitly agreed to the applicability of these terms and conditions to subsequent assignments with Sparta.

The applicability of any other terms and conditions of the client is expressly rejected.

If one or more provisions of these terms and conditions are void or voided, the remaining provisions of these terms and conditions shall remain in full force and effect. The provision(s) nullified or invalidated in that case shall be accorded a corresponding meaning to the greatest extent possible.

Article 3: Services

The agreement is realized when the client has given the order by signing and receiving the assignment confirmation by Sparta.

The client assigns Sparta to take care of its interests with respect to the damage suffered and to be suffered by the client as a result of the incident.

The work performed by Sparta for the client is referred to as extrajudicial legal assistance (without the intervention of a judge).If it is deemed necessary to ask the Dutch court for an opinion, Sparta shall, upon request, transfer the file to an allied (personal injury) lawyer.  With respect to the use of medical and other experts, additional arrangements will be made if necessary.

Article 4: Procedure for handling the case

If and as long as the matter is being handled by Sparta, the client is obliged to truthfully provide all the cooperation required in connection with the handling of the matter, to provide timely information and to make available all relevant documents.

In the event of a breach of such obligation(s), Sparta may recover from the client the costs and fees incurred. If the client discontinues the case with Sparta prematurely, Sparta shall charge the client for the costs incurred in the meantime and shall, if possible, be entitled to set off the advance payments made or to be made to the client by the insurer and/or liable party, and Sparta shall be entitled to retain the file until full payment has been made.

Sparta shall keep the client informed of the status of the claim and advise on the progress of the claim.

Article 5: Cooperation and provision of data

The client shall ensure that it refrains from all acts which frustrate or render impossible the execution of the assignment by Sparta.

If and as long as the case is being handled by Sparta, the client is obliged to provide all the cooperation required in connection with the handling of the case, to provide accurate information and to make available all relevant documents. If the client prematurely terminates the case with Sparta, or if the provisions of the first sentence of this article are not met, Sparta may charge the costs incurred in the meantime to the client and/or set them off against the advances made or to be made to the client by the (insurer of the) liable party.

If the client has contracted a legal aid insurance, the client should report the damages to this insurer. It is recommended, in any case because of the statute of limitations, to do this within three years following the date of the accident.

In order for the liable party or his insurer to be able to pay the damages, the client is obliged to provide his own bank account number into which these payments can be made, which means that the client is not under tutelage or administration. In this case the account number of the administrator or curator must be provided.

Article 6: Secrecy

Sparta is cautious about sharing data of clients and other parties. Sparta is, except for obligations imposed by law to disclose certain data, obliged to maintain secrecy towards third parties who are not involved in the execution of the assignment. This confidentiality relates to all information of a private nature which is made available to Sparta by the client and the results obtained from processing it.

The client is required to observe confidentiality with respect to all data and documents relating to the assignment, which are reasonably considered to be confidential and secret.

Sparta is entitled to forward all (medical) information and data relevant to the assessment of the damages to the counterparty, its insurer or its representative, and any other parties necessarily involved in the settlement of the claim.

Article 7: Liability

Sparta is liable for any deficiencies in the execution of the assignment, if and insofar as under normal circumstances these deficiencies could have been avoided given normal professional knowledge and the observance of normal vigilance and methods of professional practice. The liability for above-mentioned damages is limited to the amount of the fee received by Sparta for its activities.

Sparta’s liability for indirect damage, such as consequential loss, lost income, etc. is excluded. Sparta shall, in the event of a culpable attributable shortcoming, first be declared in default in writing by the client, with a reasonable period of time to comply with its obligations, or to repair any errors or to limit or eliminate any damage.

If and insofar as any shortcomings in the performance of the work by Sparta are the result of the Client not, not timely or not sufficiently meeting its obligations under Article 5, Sparta shall not be liable for such shortcomings at all. Repairs of such shortcomings shall be made at the client’s expense.

Sparta is not liable for any shortcomings of auxiliary persons (third parties) it has engaged.

Article 8: Costs of legal assistance

These costs are also called ‘extrajudicial costs of legal assistance’ and are recovered by Sparta from the liable party, or its insurer. This is possible because these costs are part of the claim, which is regulated by law under article 6:96 of the Dutch Civil Code. Sparta, as an expert and professional advocate, can claim these costs as a separate item of compensation from the liable party. The recovered extrajudicial costs shall belong to Sparta.

If the client is (partly) to blame for the occurrence of the accident and therefore the injury, the liable party, or its insurer, is usually obliged (barring exceptions) to pay these costs in proportion to its own share of the blame. The remaining costs will be borne by the client.

The fee is determined by multiplying the hours spent in the relevant period by Sparta’s hourly rate. If applicable, the fee will be supplemented with disbursements and then invoiced to the client.

All rates quoted are exclusive of value added tax and exclusive of other government taxes. Sparta reserves the right to index the hourly rate annually on the basis of any cost increases.

If the extrajudicial costs are reimbursed by a counterparty, the client authorizes this counterparty to pay the compensation directly to Sparta. If the extrajudicial costs are not (entirely) reimbursed, Sparta is prepared to waive these costs in certain cases.

Article 9: Applicable law and disputes

The conclusion, including the negotiations on and the execution or performance of assignments are governed exclusively by Dutch law, even if under international private law the law of another country is applicable.

All disputes arising from the legal relationship between Sparta and its client(s) shall be settled exclusively by the competent court in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.