Terms of use

General: Seeds of Law is a private limited liability company (Peeters Advocaten-Avocats BVBA) with registered office at Bastion Tower, Marsveldplein 5-5 Place du Champ de Mars, 1050 Brussels, and is registered at the Crossroads Bank of Enterprises under number BE0816.588.065.

Application: These Terms of use apply to all activities performed for clients by Seeds of Law, its lawyers (and their companies), its co-workers and employees, and to all activities performed by third parties for Seeds of Law for which it can be held liable, and to all legal relationships which Seeds of Law has with third parties.

By using Seeds of Law for your legal services you agree to be bound by these Terms of use for the period of the services and for as long as the effects of the services last, explicitly excluding any other Terms of use.

Contractual Relationship: All tasks are exclusively performed and accepted by Seeds of Law. The lawyers of Seeds of Law perform their services on behalf of and for the account of Seeds of Law, unless they have expressly indicated that they the specific file is handled under their own management, or except for pro deo-dossiers of trainee lawyers. The contractual relationship exists between the client and Seeds of Law, even if the client only has contact with one or more lawyers. The client agrees that any liability for legal services executed lies solely with Seeds of Law, and not with a particular lawyer or employee.

Performance of the Agreement: At the commencement of the agreement, the client shall provide Seeds of Law with all of the information required for the requested services. The client acknowledges that effective and efficient services are dependent on the completeness and accuracy of the information provided by the client. Should the client fail to provide the information within the set period, Seeds of Law has the right to suspend its work and invoice the services already provided.

The obligations of Seeds of Law are best efforts obligations, and not obligations of result.

Third parties: For the effective performance of the task Seeds of Law may use the services of third parties of its own choice, such as technical experts, bailiffs, lawyers in its national and/or international network and consultants. Seeds of Law can never be held liable for assistance or services provided by, or errors committed by these third parties. Seeds of Law is at all times authorised by the clients to ask for assistance to these third parties, and to accept any limitations of liability of third parties on behalf of clients, in the name and for the account of the client. The invoice of any third party called upon shall be issued in the name of the client, and paid for by the client.

Remuneration: The fee of Seeds of Law is charged on the basis of hourly rates, taking into account the nature, complexity and urgency of the task, and the lawyers handling the matter. Each prior estimate of the total fee of the budget is made in good faith and is not binding, unless this is expressly agreed between Seeds of Law and the client. Seeds of Law will try to inform the client beforehand, if the estimate budget risks being substantially exceeded.

Hourly rates are adapted to the index each year, and may also be adapted at any time by each individual lawyer.

At the end of each month, Seeds of Law sends a fee note of the work performed and costs incurred which have not yet been invoiced, taking into account the hourly rate applied by each lawyer, and a fixed percentage of 9% for administration costs (i.e. costs for opening the dossier, of joint dossiers, typing costs, printing and copying costs, postage, telephone costs, etc.) calculated on top of the fee, travel and accommodation expenses and costs of third parties. The fixed percentage of administration costs may be revised each year.

Commencement of the performance of services, and also the continuation of the services may be subject to payment of a provision. If the scope of the task or the scales of expected costs give cause for this, Seeds of Law is entitled to request supplementary provisions. Seeds of Law is entitled to charge the provision in the final fee note or in an interim fee note.

All estimates, tariff rates and fee proposals and tariffs indicated do not include VAT. VAT will be charged in addition on the invoices.

Fee note are payable, within 15 days, at the registered office of Seeds of Law. If a fee note of Seeds of Law is not paid on the due date, Seeds of Law has the right, ipso jure and without obligation to proceed to prior notification of default, to charge interest on the arrears of 10% from the due date until the date of full payment, and also the right to request a fixed sum of compensation of 10% of the unpaid fee note sum.

Seeds of Law has the right to suspend performance of its activities for a client, until the respective fee notes have been paid in full, and to terminate the agreement without being held liable for any damage arising from the suspension or termination of its activities due to the client’s failure to pay the respective fee note.

Seeds of Law may withhold the amount of a fee note owed by the client to Seeds of Law, from the sums which Seeds of Law receives for the client on its third-party account, provided Seeds of Law notifies the client of this.

Complaints: If the client does not agree with a fee note, the client must notify Seeds of Law of this in writing, stating reasons, as quickly as possible from receipt of it, and at latest within fourteen (14) days of the invoice date. The complaint will be investigated, and where possible, Seeds of Law will try to reach a solution with the client.

Liability: Seeds of Law and its lawyers are insured for professional liability via the Dutch speaking Bar Council and via the Council of French-Speaking and German-Speaking Bars, by the Public Limited Company Amlin Europ (NV/SA Amlin Europe). Under this policy, the professional liability of Seeds of Law and its lawyers is limited to the insured amount of 1,250,000 Euros "primary" insurance and thereafter "secondary" insurance up to 5,000,000 Euros per event of damage. The client acknowledges this insurance policy of Seeds of Law and its lawyers to be adequate, and agrees that compensation for a professional error of Seeds of Law and/or its lawyers and/or appointees is to be limited to the amount for which Seeds of Law and its lawyers are actually covered and insured under the aforesaid policy.

If the insurance company does not cover the damage, the total liability of Seeds of Law, its lawyers and its appointees shall be limited in principal, costs and interest included to the amount of the fees received (not including V.A.T.) charged in the particular for which liability was upheld.

Money-Laundering Legislation: Seeds of Law is obliged to comply with money-laundering legislation (Act of 18 September 2017). In the framework of this legislation, its clients must provide all information when requested by Seeds of Law. Pursuant to this Act, if Seeds of Law discovers facts which it knows or suspects to be linked to money-laundering practices or terrorism, it is obligated to pass on this information to the President of the Bar, who, in specific cases, will pass it on to the Financial Information-Processing Cell.

Intellectual property rights: Copyrights and other intellectual property rights relating to advice, drafts, pleadings and other documents provided by Seeds of Law are the property of Seeds of Law. The client may use these documents within the purpose of the services requested of Seeds of Law by the client.

Confidentiality: Seeds of Law respects the confidentiality of all information, in accordance with the ethical and professional code of practice of the Dutch Speaking Bar Council and of the French-Speaking and German-Speaking Bar Council of Belgium. Seeds of Law may use the name of the client for advertising purposes and in presentations to clients and prospective clients.

Privacy: Seeds of Law will use the information provided by the client primarily in order to perform the legal services, and secondarily in order to inform the client of the activities of Seeds of Law via the newsletter and/or other mailings.

Seeds of Law is responsible for processing. If the client does not wish to receive advertising, the client may unsubscribe from the newsletter and/or other mailings at any time via the link in the e-mail itself, or by sending an email to info@seeds.law. The client may also use this email address to access his information, to obtain a copy of it, correct it, or have it removed. The information of the client shall never be transferred to third parties, except if this transfer is based on a legal obligation of Seeds of Law, or if the client consents to this.

Applicable Law and Competent Court: The legal relationship between clients and Seeds of Law is exclusively governed by Belgian law. Any dispute between Seeds of Law and its client falls under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Dutch-Speaking Courts of Brussels. Nevertheless, Seeds of Law reserves the right to take legal action at any competent court in the judicial district of the client. In the event of a dispute, the Dutch-language version of the present Terms of use shall prevail.

Any claim linked to a dispute regarding services of Seeds of Law must be instituted within twelve (12) months of the termination of the services.

These Terms of use are available for consultation at www.seeds.law.