At De Clercq, we attach great importance to transparency, especially with respect to our fees.

Our services are performed on the basis of the amount of time spent on the matter in hand, and is linked to an hourly fee. This hourly fee varies from EUR 90 to EUR 295, depending on the number of years’ experience that the relevant lawyer or civil-law notary has. All the fees are exclusive of 6% office expenses and 19% VAT.

We record our time in six-minute units, and work that takes more or less time to complete is always rounded up or down to a reasonable extent. We always keep our clients informed of the amount of the costs in each matter, and we do this at least once a month.

Alternatives

This is the classic way of charging for work. However, your interests may require an alternative and more up-to-date way of charging our fees. If such is the case, we will be pleased to do this for you.

Fixed price

We will be happy to make a further estimate of the anticipated costs in consultation with you. If we are able to make an accurate estimate in advance of the number of hours to be spent on your case, this will enable us to work on the basis of a fixed price. We would be pleased to make suitable agreements with you in this respect.

Legal proceedings: ‘No cure less pay’

At De Clercq, we work in a solution-oriented way. We will always discuss the feasibility of a case with you and advise you – partly in view of the (financial) importance of a matter – on possible legal proceedings or an out-of-court settlement. A great deal of time and money is involved with respect to legal proceedings, and in this connection, we would like to think along with you. For instance, bailiff’s costs and court fees are often charged during the average legal proceedings in addition to lawyer’s fees. Due to our professional rules, we cannot make you an offer on a ‘no cure no pay’ basis, although we can make you an offer on a ‘no cure less pay’ basis where appropriate. We will be pleased to explain what this entails to you.

General terms and conditions

Our general terms and conditions always apply to all services provided by De Clercq. These include a limitation of liability, among other things.

Primary Legal Aid Facility

We have noticed that many of our clients require fast and effective legal advice at short notice and at regular intervals. They call us or mail us with a question which takes a relatively short time to answer. In such cases, we do not need to open a separate file. These clients obviously need what we call ‘Primary Legal Aid’.

Our Primary Legal Aid Facility is the gateway to our customary (secondary) legal services. At De Clercq, our staff act quickly and easily as your external company lawyer or your regular lawyer in such cases. Fast and high-quality legal services provided at fixed lower fees is the essence of this facility. With respect to the Primary Legal Aid Facility, we use the services of designated contact persons for the most relevant legal areas. For more information on this facility, please feel free to contact us.