Advocatenkantoor De Binnenstad was founded in 1981 and is based in Amsterdam’s historic centre, close to Muntplein. Our firm represents private individuals as well as small businesses and focuses on legal aid cases. For those clients who do not qualify for subsidized legal aid, our fees are moderate.
Areas of expertise
Labour law
Labour law is the area of law dealing with the relationship between employees and employers. Cases may involve (the threat of) dismissal, problems around pay, health and safety issues, continued payment of wages during periods of illness, etc.
Please be aware that under the current labour legislation, the time frame to bring a case before a court is often very short indeed. If you have doubts or questions about your employment situation, please do not hesitate to contact us. Together, we can see if any legal action is necessary.
Tenancy Law
Our firm can help you with legal problems concerning housing, like termination of the lease, insufficient maintenance of the house, conflicts about the amount of rent or service charges, returning of deposits etc. Our firm chiefly represents tenants and owners associations (VVE) rather than landlords.
Family law
This area of law deals with matters like divorce, maintenance payments, visitation rights, paternity, adoption etc. Cases about child protection measures (OTS/UHP) also fall under this area of law.
Social Security Law
Social Security Law is the area of law dealing with cases concerning social benefits like unemployment benefit (WW), incapacity benefits (WIA/WAO/ZW), social assistance (bijstand) etc. It also includes cases about family allowance and medical support.
Usually, if an unfavourable decision is made concerning a benefit, action needs to be taken promptly or the decision becomes irreversible. If you receive a decision from a benefit authority that you disagree with, please get in touch so we can discuss if legal action needs to be taken. Also, if there are problems with the payment of benefits without an official decision having been taken, we may be able to help you.
Immigration law
We can assist you with cases about residence permits and applications for Dutch citizenship.
Did you receive a letter from the Immigration Service (IND)? It is important to respond quickly and correctly. Please contact us so we can advise you regarding the best course of action. You are also welcome to contact us if you simply have questions about this area of law.
Costs
People with a low income and little to no assets can qualify for legal aid. If legal aid is granted, the client does need to pay a copay (eigen bijdrage). The amount of the copay depends on the client’s income. Sometimes, the costs of the copay can be covered by the municipal authorities through the bijzondere bijstand.
More information about the system of legal aid and the copay can be found on the website of the Legal Aid Board (Raad voor Rechtsbijstand): www.rvr.org (there is a button for English in the top right hand corner).
For those clients who do not qualify for legal aid, we charge a moderate hourly fee. The height of the fee depends on various factors such as the nature of the case – your lawyer can give you more specific information.
Apart from legal fees or the copay, court costs and certain administrative charges may apply. Your lawyer will always try to give you an estimate of the overall costs of the case beforehand. Payment in instalments can usually be arranged.