The Dutch government should take action to stop the US legal claim culture taking root in the Netherlands, according to a senior official from the US Chamber of Commerce in Friday’s Financieele Dagblad.

‘If the government does not do anything, in 10 years the Netherlands will have the same sort of claim culture as in the US. That will damage Dutch companies and the economy,’ the paper quotes Scevole de Cazotte, senior director of the chamber’s European affairs department, as saying.
In particular, the government should make more demands with regard to transparency, De Cazotte said.
Handful
A handful of companies have emerged in the Netherlands in recent years which ‘buy up’ damages claims. They work on a no cure no pay basis and generally pay out 80% of any damages to the plaintiffs, the paper says.
For example, a company called Ierse Claim Funding International is currently processing a damages claim against KLM-Air France and Martinair on competition grounds, specialist lawyer Jurjen Lemstra told the paper.
De Cazotte said the Netherlands is attractive for mass claims because out of court settlements are declared binding on all plaintiffs, which makes companies more eager to settle.