General conditions

Article 1: Definitions.

In these general terms and conditions, the following definitions shall apply:

1. Van der Veer Notary Public: Van der Veer Praktijk B.V., established in Waalre, registered in the trade register under number 60791233;
2. Client: the natural or legal person who has commissioned Van der Veer Notariaat to perform work;
3. Work: all work for which an order is given or which is performed or should be performed by Van der Veer Notariaat on any other account directly related to the order.

Article 2: Applicability of these terms and conditions

1. These terms and conditions apply to all work that Van der Veer Notariaat performs on behalf of clients and to all agreements that Van der Veer Notariaat enters into with clients.
2. These terms and conditions also apply to agreements with Van der Veer Notariaat, the execution of which requires the involvement of third parties.
3. Not only Van der Veer Notariaat, but also all persons who are engaged in the execution of any assignment of a customer, may invoke the terms and conditions. The same shall apply to former employees including their possible heirs, should they be held liable after they have left the office of Van der Veer Notariaat.
4. If one or more of the provisions of these terms and conditions are void or voidable, the remaining provisions of these terms and conditions shall remain in full force and effect. The void or voidable provision will be replaced by a workable provision, which in its new wording approaches the original essence as closely as possible.

 Article 3: Creation and execution of orders.

1. An assignment may be oral or written.
2. Proof of an order shall include written notification by the customer, written confirmation of the order by Van der Veer Notariaat and, in the case of an oral order, knowledge by the customer of the fact that Van der Veer Notariaat has commenced work without the customer immediately protesting this in writing. The uncontested acceptance of a (draft) deed, advice or other document drawn up by Van der Veer Notariaat at the client's request also signifies acknowledgement of an assignment by the client.
3. An assignment is deemed to have been issued for an indefinite period of time unless it is expressly agreed in writing or it follows from the nature of the assignment that it has been issued for a definite period of time or for a specific project.
4. An assignment is not strictly limited to the work that is named when it is given but also includes all that work whose performance is reasonably within the scope of the assignment.
5. Van der Veer Notariaat determines the manner in which the assignment granted is carried out.
6. All assignments shall be deemed to have been exclusively given to and accepted by Van der Veer Notariaat, even if it is the client's express or tacit intention that an assignment be carried out by a specific person.
7. The operation of Article 7:404 of the Civil Code, which regulates the latter case, and the operation of Article 7:407(2) of the Civil Code, which establishes joint and several liability in the case where two or more persons have received an assignment, are completely excluded.

Article 4: Principal's liability

1. In the event that an assignment is given by several people, each of them is jointly and severally liable for the costs (fee and any out-of-pocket expenses) owed to Van der Veer Notariaat in connection with that assignment.
2. If an assignment is given by a natural person on behalf of a legal entity, if this natural person can be regarded as the (co-)policymaker of this legal entity, he is also the private principal. In case of non-payment by the legal person, he is therefore personally liable for the payment of the invoice, irrespective of whether it is made out in the name of a legal person or in the name of the principal as a natural person, whether or not at the principal's request.

Article 5: Electronic communication

During the execution of the order, the client and Van der Veer Notariaat may communicate with each other by electronic means such as e-mail, the Internet and fax. However, Van der Veer Notariaat shall not be liable for damage suffered by the client as a result of the provision and use of electronic means of communication, including - but not limited to - damage as a result of non-delivery or delay in the delivery of electronic communication, interception or manipulation of electronic communication by third parties or by software/equipment used to send, receive or process electronic communication, transmission of viruses and non-functioning or improper functioning of the telecommunication network or other means required for electronic communication, except in so far as the damage is the result of malice or gross negligence on the part of Van der Veer Notariaat.

Article 6: Intellectual Property

1.  Van der Veer Notariaat reserves all rights to products of the mind which it uses or has used in the execution of the order.
2. The client is prohibited from duplicating, publishing, exploiting or making these products available to third parties (or having them duplicated) without the prior written consent of Van der Veer Notariaat.

Article 7: Liability

1. Van der Veer Notariaat is a member of the Royal Notarial Professional Organization. Van der Veer Notariaat is insured against professional liability in accordance with the regulations of the Royal Notarial Professional Organization.
2. Should one or more mistakes be made in the work performed in the execution of the instruction given to Van der Veer Notariaat, the total compensation to be paid to the client and third parties in connection with that work shall be limited to the amount for which the liability insurance company is entitled to pay out in such a case, increased by the amount of the excess which according to the terms and conditions of the insurance company is not at the expense of the insurer. If Van der Veer Notariaat has no claim to payment, then liability shall be limited to a maximum of the notarial fee charged for the service in question.
3. The limitation of liability described in sections 7.1 and 7.2 shall also apply in the event that Van der Veer Notariaat is liable for errors made by third parties it engages or for the improper functioning of equipment, software, data files, registers or other items used by it in the execution of the order, without exception.
4. Should any information or documents belonging to the customer, which are in Van der Veer Notariaat's possession, be lost or damaged, Van der Veer Notariaat shall not be liable for this.
5. The limitation of liability as described in sections 7.1 and 7.2 also applies if Van der Veer Notariaat has wrongfully refused to perform its service and damage results from this.
6. Liability claims by the client must be made within three (3) months after the client becomes aware of the event leading to liability.

 Article 8: Payment

1. Unless otherwise agreed, the fee shall be determined on the basis of the hours spent on the instruction, multiplied by the hourly rate charged by Van der Veer Notariaat. Unless otherwise stated, the fee owed and any out-of-pocket expenses must be in the possession of Van der Veer Notariaat no later than on the date the deed is executed and before it is signed.
2. In cases where Van der Veer Notariaat does not specify a term of payment on its invoice/declaration, a term of payment of seven (7) days after dispatch shall apply.
3. All payments shall be made without suspension and/or set-off.
4. Van der Veer Notariaat is authorized, if the assignment runs longer than one month, to invoice on an interim basis.
5. Furthermore, Van der Veer Notariaat is authorized to charge an advance on fees and disbursements. These interim and advance fee notes must be paid within seven (7) days of being sent.
6. If the assignment is terminated by the client, a final invoice shall be drawn up based on the hours spent and the client shall owe Van der Veer Notariaat compensation equal to the hours spent multiplied by Van der Veer Notariaat's usual hourly rate for the work performed plus out-of-pocket expenses.
7. The principal to whom, by means of an invoice or otherwise, payment of fees and/or disbursements has been requested in writing and from whom payment has not been received within the due period, shall be in default and liable for the costs incurred by Van der Veer Notariaat from the moment the due period has expired, both judicially and extrajudicially, for the collection of the claim, as well as in respect of the time spent by Van der Veer Notariaat on the basis of the hourly rate customary at the office for the employee concerned.
8. In the event that Van der Veer Notariaat has to send reminders of payment, at least forty-five euros (€ 45.00) in administration costs will be charged. The client shall also owe interest on the invoice amount from that time. The interest amounts to one percent (1%) per month, whereby a part of the month counts as a full month.
9. If a claim is placed out of hands for collection, collection costs will be charged in accordance with the legal regulation contained in article 6:96 of the Civil Code, with a minimum of seventy-five euros (€ 75.00), without prejudice to the application of the provisions above in section 10.2. All (extra)judicial costs shall be borne by the client.
10. If Van der Veer Notariaat proves to have incurred higher costs, which were reasonably necessary, these will also qualify for reimbursement.

 Article 9: Deed not passed.

1. Work that is performed without ultimately leading to a notarial deed shall also be covered by the agreement. Van der Veer Notariaat shall be authorized to charge the customer for this work on the basis of the time spent by Van der Veer Notariaat on the assignment, at the hourly rates customary to the office, unless otherwise agreed upon in writing between the customer and Van der Veer Notariaat. This shall also apply if a customer terminates an assignment to provide services prematurely.
2. Notwithstanding the aforementioned, Van der Veer Notariaat shall be authorized, in the event that the appointment for the execution of the notarial deed(s) cannot take place two (2) days or less before the agreed time for execution of the notarial deed(s) in question, and if it then appears that the completion of the matter cannot be finally effected, to charge the client seventy-five percent (75 %) of the fee agreed upon for the engagement in respect of the activities referred to under 9.1.
3. In the event that no fee is agreed upon, then the client shall owe seventy-five percent (75 %) of the rate quoted by Van der Veer Notariaat at the time of the assignment for the assigned work, as described in section 9.2.

 Article 10: Interest. Management fee

1. Van der Veer Notariaat is required by law to manage client funds in a quality account that is periodically reported to the Financial Supervision Office.
2. The interest rate on a quality account held by Van der Veer Notariaat can be either positive or negative.
3. If Van der Veer Notariaat holds funds in a quality account on behalf of the order, interest shall only be paid on these funds to the client for whom the funds are held, if the period of custody exceeds five working days. This interest shall then be equal to the interest that Van der Veer Notariaat receives from the financial institution where the quality account in question is held. Van der Veer Notariaat shall not pay interest on amounts that are kept in a quality account for a longer period of time without being obliged to do so.
4. Management costs can be deducted from the interest to be paid by Van der Veer Notariaat, whether or not by means of a lump sum. Time spent on communication regarding the management or disbursement of third-party funds shall be charged at the prevailing hourly rate of Van der Veer Notariaat's handler.
5. Van der Veer Notariaat may charge the client a fee for the use of the quality account on behalf of the client.
6. In the event that the financial institution with which Van der Veer Notariaat office holds a quality account charges costs and/or negative interest, Van der Veer Notariaat shall pass on these costs and/or negative interest to the client (or entitled party), whether or not by means of a lump sum.

 Article 11: Right of suspension

1. In the event of late payment by the principal, Van der Veer Notariaat shall be authorized to suspend the execution of work until payment has been made, without being liable in any way for the damage suffered by the principal as a result.
2. Van der Veer Notariaat is authorized to suspend fulfillment of obligations, including the handing over of documents or other items to the customer or to third parties, until such time as the customer has fulfilled all obligations towards Van der Veer Notariaat.

 Article 12: Prohibition of assignment

1. A claim against Van der Veer Notariaat due to the disbursement of funds pursuant to the legal act recorded in a deed cannot be assigned or pledged.
2. Pursuant to the policy rule of the Royal Notarial Association, the notary only pays out monies to the person who is a party to the deed and/or is entitled to the disbursement pursuant to the legal act recorded in the deed, subject to the exceptions specified in the policy rule.

 Article 13: Work.

1. Work shall be performed by Van der Veer Notariaat in compliance with the legal and other regulations applicable to a notary public.
2. Van der Veer Notariaat is obliged to keep confidential with respect to third parties who are not involved in the execution of the order the details and information provided by or on behalf of the client. This obligation shall not apply insofar as Van der Veer Notariaat has a legal or professional obligation to disclose, including the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (WWFT).
3. The Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Act applies to the services provided by Van der Veer Notariaat.
4. In that context, the notary is required to, among other things:
   1. to conduct a client due diligence in connection with the provision of services to the client, which shall include establishing and verifying identity;
   2. report to FIU-the Netherlands without the knowledge of the parties involved in the assignment if an unusual situation or transaction occurs.
5. Van der Veer Notariaat executes instructions exclusively for the benefit of the client. Third parties cannot derive any rights from the content of the work carried out and, more generally, from the way in which such instructions are or are not carried out.

 Article 14: Applicable law and competent court

1. Dutch law applies exclusively to all agreements between Van der Veer Notariaat and the customer.
2. All agreements between Van der Veer Notariaat and the client are subject to the Complaints and Disputes Scheme for the Notarial Profession. This can be consulted at www.knb.nl and www.degeschillencommissie.nl.
3. Only a Dutch judge or the Disputes Committee is authorized to take cognizance of any dispute between Van der Veer Notariaat and the customer.

 Article 15: Rules of professionalism and conduct

Van der Veer Notariaat adheres to all existing rules of professional conduct. An explanation of these rules can be found in the consumer brochure 'Rules of the game for notaries and consumers'. This brochure can be found at www.knb.nl and can be provided upon request.

 Article 16: Privacy Statement

A privacy statement applies to the work. This privacy statement is laid down in a separate document.

 Article 17: Final provision

By giving the assignment, the client declares that he agrees to these general terms and conditions. These general terms and conditions also apply to any additional assignments and follow-up assignments from the client.