Founded in 2019, boutique real estate law firm NewGround Law B.V. has been increasing its capabilities to offer both contentious and non-contentious real estate advice. Environmental, planning, sustainable energy and administrative law are all primary areas of focus for the team. Civil law notary Cynthia de Witt Wijnen-Guman specialises in real estate transactions, while Renée Fennis assists both national and international clients in lease agreements and transactions. Candidate civil law notary Etiënne Dijkhorst joined the firm in April 2023 from De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek, further strengthening the practice.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘This practice is a boutique law firm in real estate. The partners are all practitioners who came from high quality law firms. They have a small client base but they have a few very big clients. Due to it being a concise law firm there is a direct working relationship with the lawyers involved in a transaction. ’

  • ‘Renée Fennis is the go to partner. She is knowledgeable, sociable, deal and solution driven and is also willing to lead her client even if that means contradicting her client. Cynthia de Witt Wijnen is a very client driven lawyer. Anne-Marie Klijn is a very skilled lawyer. ’

  • ‘Cynthia de Witt Wijnen is very committed, experienced and has extensive knowledge, is great in negotiations, and always on top on things.’

  • ‘Etienne Dijkhorst is an inspired notary and lawyer with a wealth of experience. Etienne and his team are always there for you. The big difference is the personal approach and the fact that partners are closely involved.’

  • ‘Cynthia de Witt Wijnen-Guman is an outstanding personality with great management and leadership skills. She combines exceptional sensitivity and commitment with expert knowledge and specialist skills for instance relating to the hospitality industry and for cross-border transactions.’

  • ‘A boutique firm that can handle real estate transactions with great care and attention for the matter, personal and tailored. The team is experienced and has good knowledge of market standards. They also have experience in the field of asset management and litigation, which makes it easy to switch to relevant experts in those fields, if necessary.���

  • ‘Etienne Dijkhorst is experienced and well qualified, always on top of things and very service oriented. He is pragmatic and knows how to get the job done, always communicating in a pleasant and constructive way with other counsel involved.’

  • ‘Cynthia de Witt is a very talented individual with very good communication and negotiating skills. Renée Fennis is also very appreciated, professional and always providing good advice on difficult negotiations.’

Key clients

  • AEW Europe
  • BEOS AG
  • BNP Paribas Real Estate Investments
  • Bouwinvest Real Estate Investors
  • Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH
  • Fleura Onroerend Goed B.V.
  • Informa Europe B.V.
  • Ofi Invest
  • Swiss Life Asset Managers Deutschland GmbH
  • Verdion GmbH
  • WestInvest Gesellschaft für Investmentfonds
  • Klépierre Vastgoedontwikkeling B.V.
  • Miro
  • AXA Real Estate Investment Managers Nederland B.V.
  • Patrizia
  • Warburg-HIH Invest Real Estate Benelux B.V.
  • HANSAINVEST Hanseatische Investment-GmbH

Work highlights

  • Advised Deka Immobilien Investment on the €566m sale-and-leaseback of the international headquarters of Booking.com in Amsterdam.
  • Advised Deka Immobilien Investment on the €217m sale of the office building De Resident to the Dutch government.
  • Advised Bouwinvest Residential Fund on the €33.5m sale of 118 residential properties to Daelmans Vastgoed.

Lawyers

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Cynthia de Witt Wijnen-Guman, Charles van Rijckevorsel, Anne-Marie Klijn, André Gaastra, Erwin Noordover, Renée Fennis, Etiënne Dijkhorst

Other key lawyers

Sabrine Zebeda