Latest blog articles

The ECtHR’s Satamedia judgment juxtaposes issues of data protection and freedom of expression relating to the (re-)publication of public tax data.

On 9 April 2011 a gunman killed 6 people in a shopping mall in the Dutch town of Alphen aan den Rijn. A group of victims now claims damages from the gunman’s parents, claiming that they should have prevented their son from this horrendous act. The claim will fail: on the facts of the case, there is...

It is not that listening to the electorate is wrong. It is not wrong either to build a campaign on perceived wishes of the electorate. Trying to win an electoral campaign either, is wrong.

What exactly are the legal instruments for the EU according the measures that have been introduced recently with regard to the constitutional court and in terms of the media law. This article is only available in Dutch.

Legitimacy in the political sense can be defined as an inquiry into the justification for the exercise of public authority. Or put differently: it is the reason why I, being part of society, should accept laws and regulations that bind me.

The day after the “Brexit”-referendum, with a majority of 51.9% voting to leave the European Union, some speak of the success of democracy (“the people have spoken”). Already, there are calls for referenda in other countries to let the people speak there, too. This suggests that independently of our...

On Tuesday, the Grand Chamber of the Court of Justice of the European Union declared the Commission’s US Safe Harbour Decision invalid. The Court’s ruling in Case C-362/14   of the Austrian Internet activist Maximillian Schrems v the Irish Data Protection Commissioner is a milestone in the...

After months of negotiations between Greece, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Union (EU), which acuminated in an overwhelming amount of over 60% of “no”-votes by the Greek citizens to the reforms attached to the second Greek bailout programme...

Two weeks ago, in Case C-409/13 Council v. Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union established that the European Commission is entitled to withdraw a proposal for a legislative act where it fears that the European Parliament and the Council will amend it in a manner which would...

Maybe you know the book The Undutchables.  It describes the Dutch and how it must be for a foreigner to immigrate to The Netherlands and be confronted with Dutch peculiarities. For a next edition a new chapter may be added with specific interest for lawyers. In The Netherlands we celebrate Kings Day...