General Terms and Conditions

These general terms and conditions apply to all services provided by the lawyers of BV FAIRWAY PARTNERS IN LAW AND MEDIATION, located at 1800 VILVOORDE, Grote Markt 14, and registered in the Crossroads Bank for Enterprises under number 0473.608.537 (RPR BRUSSELS). The term "client" refers to any natural person, legal entity, or government that instructs FAIRWAY to act on its behalf, both judicially and extrajudicially, or in the context of advisory services or mediation.

Whenever a client uses the services of FAIRWAY, they are deemed to be aware of these general terms and conditions and to accept them without reservation. Any conflicting general terms and conditions from the client shall only apply if they have been accepted in advance in writing and expressly by FAIRWAY. Unless published or communicated by FAIRWAY in any form, these general terms and conditions also apply to future relationships between the parties.

Any additions, modifications, or deviations to or from these general terms and conditions must be accepted in advance, in writing, and expressly by FAIRWAY.

It is permissible for FAIRWAY and the clients to draw up an additional express agreement for legal services. In the absence of such, these general terms and conditions will govern the contractual relationship between the parties, and any remaining agreements will be derived from mutual communication. FAIRWAY is subject to VAT regulation.

1.   Object of the services rendered

The agreement pertains to the provision of legal assistance, advice, and/or representation by the Law Firm to the Client within the scope of assignments entrusted by the Client and accepted by the Law Firm. The Law Firm undertakes to safeguard the Client's interests in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, as well as the ethical rules governing the legal profession.

2.   The character of the cooperation

The Law Firm promptly informs the Client about the execution of his/her assignment and the progress of the treatment of the case.

The Law Firm is subject to professional secrecy, while the Client also respects the confidentiality of documents transmitted by the Law Firm.

The Client gives all useful information and documents to the Law Firm on a punctual basis and throughout the duration of the assignment, if necessary at the Law Firm's request.

The Law Firm works as a team. The dominus litis of the case works with the other lawyers of relevant specialised sections in order to provide the Client with the highest possible quality service. 

3.   Reliance on third parties

The case is treated and followed up by the lawyers working at the Law Firm, but the Client agrees that for specific assignments other lawyers may be called upon for the execution of the assignment, albeit under the responsibility of the Law Firm.

If for the execution of the assignment it is necessary to call upon a bailiff or a translator, the Client will leave the choice of such third party to the Law Firm.

The Law Firm only calls upon other third parties, such as notaries, experts or accountants, in consultation with the Client, with the explicit consent of the Client.

4.   Second-line legal assistance

The Client declares having been informed about the conditions for eligibility for second-line legal assistance.

The Client declares not to be eligible for or not to wish to make use of second-line legal assistance and undertakes to immediately inform the Law Firm should this change during the execution of the agreement. If the Client, despite being entitled to second-line legal assistance, grants a mandate to the Law Firm, the conditions of this agreement shall apply.

If, during the handling of the case, the Client becomes eligible for second-line legal assistance and decides to make use of it, this cooperation agreement shall be considered terminated. The Client undertakes to immediately inform the Law Firm thereof, and from the moment of notification, this cooperation agreement shall be considered terminated. The Client undertakes to settle all fees and costs incurred up to the moment of said notification in accordance with this cooperation agreement.

5. Costs and Fees

The statement of costs and fees of the Law Firm may contain three elements :

1.     the fees

2.     the costs of the Law Firm

3.     the court costs and expenses

The fee is the remuneration for the services provided by the Law Firm. The fee rate varies depending on the lawyer providing the services. The Law Firm applies, in the interest of the cases and the Clients, the principle that each case is always followed up by two lawyers, and, if necessary, by more than two lawyers when the complexity of the case requires it. When certain services (e.g., meetings, hearings, discussions) are carried out by multiple lawyers, the Law Firm will invoice the full fees for these professionals.

The applicable hourly rate will be included in the collaboration agreement or intake email.

These hourly rates are indexed annually, more specifically on 1 January of each calendar year.

The costs of the Law Firm, which are also subjected to VAT, consist of general costs and specific costs.

General costs relate to the operation of the firm and include, among other things, the costs of the building, IT infrastructure, lawyer training, and office operations (including the costs of opening the file). For these costs, a flat fee of 7% on the invoiced fees is charged. This fee is charged per invoice.

Specific costs relate to costs that can be attributed to a specific case, insofar as they are not explicitly included under general costs. These costs are charged as follows:                                                                

• Kilometre : * EUR per kilometre
• Filing via e-deposit or DPA: * EUR per filing
• Search in the national register or the central register of seizure notices: * EUR per search 

Other specific costs, such as costs for registered mail, are charged at their actual cost.                                  

Court fees and expenses are the costs the Law Firm had to advance to third parties, such as the registry, translators and public agencies.

These costs are listed precisely and in detail in the statement of costs and fees.  

The Law Firm will request one or more advances before the start of the assignment and during the treatment of the case. A retainer or advance is an amount paid by the Client to the Law Firm, prior to a detailed statement of costs and fees.

In certain cases, both in the period prior to the start of any proceedings and during the first few months of the proceedings, a lot of effort - and thus working hours and costs - usually have to be made at relatively short notice.

The size of the initial advance is therefore determined in function of these expected efforts and also the difficulty and urgency of the case. In the statement of costs and fees, the advances are deducted from the total amount.

The Client pays the advance and the statement of costs and fees of the Law Firm within fourteen days (14) after receipt of the invitation to pay. The Law Firm may, if this is necessary for the proper provision of services, specify a shorter payment period, based on motivation. The Law Firm reserves the right to proceed with the assignment only after receipt of the requested advance payment.

If the Client does not agree with the requested advance or statement of costs and fees, he/she is obliged to protest it in writing within fourteen days (14) after receipt.

The Client declares having been informed by the Law Firm that the case may qualify for coverage under a legal expenses insurance policy and undertakes to notify the Law Firm in writing if such insurance is in place.

6.   Late payment - mutual obligations

In the event of non-payment of an amount owed by the due date by one of the parties to this cooperation agreement, the amount shall become legally due after sending a notice of default in the form of a first reminder and after the expiry of the period of at least fourteen (14) calendar days specified therein:

(1)   default interest starting from the calendar day following the day on which the reminder is sent, at the reference interest rate increased by eight (8) percentage points referred to in Article 5 (2) of the Law of 2 August 2002 on combating late payment in commercial transactions;

(2)   a flat-rate compensation equal to :

• 20,00 EUR if the amount due is less than or equal to 150,00 EUR;
• 30,00 EUR plus 10% of the amount due on the bracket between 150,01 EUR and 500 EUR if the balance due is between 150,01 EUR and 500,00 EUR;
• 65,00 EUR plus 5% of the amount due on the bracket above 500,00 EUR with a maximum of 2.000,00 EUR if the amount due is more than 500,00 EUR.

The period of fourteen (14) calendar days starts on the third working day after the reminder has been sent to the other party. If the reminder is sent electronically, the period of fourteen (14) calendar days starts on the calendar day following the day on which the reminder was sent to the other party.

7.   Third party funds

The Law Firm shall forward all amounts it receives for the Client to the Client within the shortest possible time. If the Law Firm cannot immediately forward an amount, it informs the Client of the receipt of the amount and the reason why the amount has not been forwarded yet.

Except for personal maintenance, the Law Firm may withhold from the amounts it receives on behalf of the Client the portion to cover outstanding advances on costs and fees or statements of costs and fees. It shall inform the Client of this in writing. This clause does not affect the Client's right to contest the Law Firm's statements of fees and to claim payment of the retained amounts.

The Law Firm shall immediately forward all amounts it receives from the Client on behalf of third parties to those third parties.

8.   Privacy

The Client signs the information and consent form for the processing of personal data as part of the treatment of his/her case. This form is an addendum to the cooperation agreement. The privacy statement is available at www.fairway.law and is also available for inspection at the Law Firm’s office. 

9.   Alternative dispute resolution (ADR)

If the Law Firm was asked to defend the Client's interests in a dispute that has arisen between the Client and an opposing party, the Law Firm will inform the Client of the existence of alternative dispute resolution in accordance with article 444, 2nd paragraph Ger.W.

More information on these different approaches can be found on the website of the Order of Flemish Bars www.advocaat.be. Should the Client have any further questions regarding the above, the Client can always contact the Law Firm.

10. Liability

The Law Firm and the lawyers working within the Law Firm are insured for their professional liability with Amlin. The liability of the Law firm and its lawyers is limited to the coverage amount of the professional liability insurance. The Client considers the standard insurance sufficient.

The Law Firm and its lawyers are not liable for the services provided by third parties engaged.

If the professional liability insurer does not cover the damages, without any fault on the part of the Law Firm or its lawyers, compensation for damages due to a professional error is limited to a maximum amount of 10.000,00 EUR including principal amount, costs, and interest.

The legal provisions on non-contractual liability are, insofar as legally permitted, not applicable between the parties, nor between a party and an auxiliary person (in the first or subsequent degree) of the other party. By signing this cooperation agreement, it is therefore excluded that a party holds the auxiliary persons of the other party liable under non-contractual liability, either during the term of the cooperation agreement or after its termination.

11. Termination of the Agreement

The Client may terminate the agreement at any time by notifying the Law Firm in writing. The Law Firm transfers its final statement of expenses and fees to the Client, taking into account its services until the termination of the agreement and the Client will comply with this in accordance with the provisions of this cooperation agreement. The Law Firm cannot claim damages.

The Law Firm can at any time terminate the agreement by notifying the Client in writing. For the determination of the moment when it ceases its services, the Law Firm should take into account the possibility for the Client to timely obtain the necessary assistance from another lawyer. The Law Firm will provide its final statement of costs and fees to the Client, taking into account its services up to the termination of the agreement, and the Client will comply with this in accordance with the provisions of this cooperation agreement.

At first request, the Law Firm will return the documents of the case to the Client.

12. Applicable Law and Competent Court

Belgian law is applicable. Only the Dutch-speaking courts of the judicial district of Brussels have jurisdiction without prejudice to the Law Firm's right to take legal action before the courts of the Client's jurisdiction.