Need a lawyer immediately? Call: +31 10 220 44 00
A new law to simplify and modernise the law of evidence in civil proceedings entered into force on 1 January (Simplification and Modernisation of Evidence Act). The law of evidence is for enabling parties in civil proceedings to substantiate their contentions in writs of summons, defences or other documents. One way to do this is by submitting written documents, expert reports or witness statements. The renewed law of evidence can be explained in several topics. The new law of evidence applies to proceedings commenced after 1 January 2025. But what exactly has changed from 1 January? The main changes will be briefly outlined here.
Preliminary evidence transactions
The new law makes it possible for parties to request the court to order multiple evidentiary transactions prior to the proceedings (this can be done even before the case is registered on the roll). Previously, a separate request had to be made for each evidence, for example if a party wanted to hear experts or to inspect certain documents. To increase efficiency, article 197 Rv-new ensures that requests can be combined. Thus, if you want to hear an expert and inspect documents, this can be done in one request.
Right of inspection
The new law clarifies the right of inspection by supplementing the law. Earlier, court intervention was necessary to inspect documents. Parties can now also claim the content of various documents without court intervention. In addition, from 1 January it will be possible to apply the right of inspection when documents are held by third parties who are not parties to the dispute.
Witness and expert evidence
The limitation of the burden of proof in the case of party witnesses has long been criticised. This mainly relates to the fact that previously, a statement by a party on whom the burden of proof rested could not provide evidence in its favour unless it sought to supplement incomplete evidence. The new law aims to remove this to abolish this restriction. Statements made by a party at the hearing can be entrusted to the judge's free discretion from 1 January.
Role of the judge
In practice, the judge was already quite active in the context of truth-telling. This manifested itself, for example, in the fact that the judge was allowed to discuss possible arguments with the parties during the oral hearing, actively guiding the debate. So this was actually always done, but this active role of the judge is now actually codified. Thus, the law now states that the judge may actively discuss their claim, request or defence with the parties.
Preservation of evidence and record
Case law had previously shown that it was possible for a party to secure evidence by having the bailiff make a prejudgment attachment of evidence. Earlier, this was only legally regulated for IP cases. Furthermore, it can be requested that the bailiff can draw up an official report to give an objective description of the facts and circumstances found by the bailiff. This is considered an authentic act and therefore has binding evidential value. The court should therefore rely on this official report.
This is a brief summary of the new law change valid in the Netherlands from 1 January 2025 for civil proceedings. If you have a question regarding the law of evidence or would like advice on a (civil) procedure you have, please contact us.
Please note that the content of our website (including any legal submissions) is for non-binding informational purposes only and does not serve as legal advice in the strict sense. The content of this site cannot and should not serve as a substitute for individual and binding legal advice relating to your specific situation. All information is therefore provided without guarantee of accuracy, completeness and timeliness.