Dispute resolution: Commercial litigation

Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn NV

Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn NV has a strong Supreme Court and commercial litigation team, which advises multinational corporations, the State of the Netherlands, Dutch municipalities and a range of administrative, financial and regulatory authorities. The Hague-based team has expertise across multiple areas of dispute resolution, including commercial, corporate and financial litigation, arbitration and other alternative dispute resolution methods. The team is known to act as a trusted advisor to the Dutch state in civil and administrative litigation but has been steadily increasing its presence in commercial and corporate litigation for private entities. Sikke Kingma leads the firm's Supreme Court team; Willem Heemskerk heads the international disputes team and advises on liability and compensation cases; and Wemmeke Wisman chairs the litigation practice, specialising in high-stakes disputes and complex civil proceedings. Raimond Dufour is the go-to for mass damages litigation.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘Very high-quality Supreme Court Litigation. Great combination of outstanding legal skills and knowledge of case law, combined with excellent pragmatic skills. To the point, clear and no-nonsense advice.’
‘Wemmeke Wisman quickly masters the subject of a particular case. She asks the relevant questions to understand the particularities of a case. She is an outstanding pleader.’
‘Hans van Wijk is for me the top Supreme Court Litigator. He is very smart, no-nonsense, a trusted advisor. Paul Tanja is the next generation star. Very bright, he drafts beautifully and is able to explain the most complex issues in clear language.’
‘Sikke Kingma is an outstanding lawyer. A very approachable expert.’
‘Pels Rijcken van Droogleever has an excellent disputes team who I have enjoyed working with. They are very practical in their approach to litigation.’
‘The team are very pleasant to deal with, friendly, professional and committed. They are always available for sharing thoughts and discussing legal topics if necessary. I find them pleasant conversation partners; they do not shy away from discussing a difficult topic and they do not let themselves be easily overwhelmed. Their extensive active knowledge is much appreciated.’
‘We have had a great experience with Hans van Wijk and Willem Heemskerk. Hans handles all our Supreme Court work and we have had a great track record in terms of successful outcomes. We have also worked with Willem and his team in commercial litigation cases, including arbitration. Again, we found them very devoted, capable, responsive and effective.’
‘Willem Heemskerk has been one of the best reputed litigators in Netherlands for decades; the same goes for Hans van Wijk in the Supreme Court department. Wemmeke Wisman is probably the most experienced trial lawyer in the country, whose recent case tally varies from high-profile litigations for the Dutch state and high-stake, complex cases for corporates. Paul Tanja is a rising star.'

Key clients

Royal Dutch Shell
Mercedes-Benz Group AG
ArcelorMittal
Porsche
Scandinavian Airlines
UBS
KPN
Nationale-Nederlanden
Philips Pensioenfonds
Dutch Central Bank
Menzis
Braskem S.A., Braskem Netherlands B.V., Braskem Netherlands Finance B.V., Braskem Netherlands Inc. B.V.
Westlake Corporation, Westlake Germany GmbH & Co. KG, Westlake Vinnolit GmbH & Co. KG, Westlake Vinnolit Holdings GmbH
Vale S.A.

Work highlights

Represented Vale in a class action following a dam burst in Brazil.
Represented two UBS entities in a class action regarding the alleged manipulation of LIBOR and other interest rate benchmarks.
Represented the State of the Netherlands in Supreme Court proceedings about the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel.

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