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KouterpoortAdvocaten

  • Hannepartner
  • Pieter-Janpartner
  • Sarahassociate

AalstDendermonde Bar

Aalst
Aalst
Re:
your first meeting

We act for individuals and small businesses in Aalst and the Dender region in family, tenancy, employment and business matters.

Prepare a first meetingHow we charge

Office open on working days, 9.00 to 12.30 and 13.30 to 17.30 (example hours).

Practice areas

What you can come to us for

Six areas, each handled by a lawyer who works in it every day. If your question falls outside them, we say so at the first meeting and name a colleague at another firm who can help.

  1. Family

    Separating, married or not. Arrangements for where the children live, maintenance, and what happens to the family home.

    Where possible we look for an agreement first, including through accredited mediation.

    What to bring (Family)

  2. Inheritance and gifts

    An estate that has to be divided, a will that raises questions, a gift you want to prepare.

    We work with the notary you already know, or the family's notary.

    What to bring (Inheritance and gifts)

  3. Tenancy

    For tenants and landlords: notice, rent arrears, the deposit, damage when the tenant leaves.

    Residential leases in Flanders from 2019 fall under the Flemish residential tenancy decree. Tenancy disputes go to the justice of the peace, whatever the amount.

    What to bring (Tenancy)

  4. Business

    Reading contracts and terms before you sign, invoices that go unpaid, disagreements between partners.

    An uncontested invoice between businesses can be collected through a bailiff, without going to court.

    What to bring (Business)

  5. Employment

    Dismissal, notice periods, pay and holiday pay. For employees, and for employers with a small team.

    Bring the dismissal letter and the date you received it: that is where the time limits start.

    What to bring (Employment)

  6. Building and damage

    A contractor who does not finish, defects after handover, damage after a road accident.

    For serious structural defects the contractor is liable for ten years from acceptance. Report other hidden defects promptly.

    What to bring (Building and damage)
Stacks of old files tied shut with black ribbon
Every document you bring gets a number in the inventory of your file.

First meeting

Which matter?

Choose the type of matter and your situation. You see which documents to bring, what the meeting costs and when there is a free slot. The meeting lasts 30 minutes.

This is information about documents and time limits, not legal advice.

A paper-coloured clay desk with a closed file folder and a wooden stamp beside it.
Illustration: a file and a stamp on a desk.

1.Which matter?

Choose whatever comes closest to your question. If your matter touches two areas, pick one: we will look at the rest in the meeting.

Which matter?

Lawyers

Who you will meet

Each file has one lawyer you know and who calls you back. When they are away, a colleague at the firm takes over, with your file.

  • Hanne

    Partner

    Sworn in
    2006
    Languages
    Dutch, French, English
    Areas
    Family, inheritance and gifts

  • Pieter-Jan

    Partner

    Sworn in
    2011
    Languages
    Dutch, English
    Areas
    Business, tenancy

  • Sarah

    Associate

    Sworn in
    2019
    Languages
    Dutch, French
    Areas
    Employment, building and damage

Fictional people and years, for illustration, shown by first name only. All of the firm's lawyers are members of the Dendermonde Bar.

A brass handle on a white-painted panelled door

Fees

How we charge

After the first meeting you receive a written fee agreement. It says whether we work by the hour or for a fixed amount, and what comes on top.

When we work by the hour, we record the time for each task and you see it on every statement. For a larger matter we ask for an advance, settled at the end.

If you have legal expenses insurance, we contact the insurer and ask what it covers. If it comes to proceedings, you choose your own lawyer.

If your income is limited, you may be entitled to a legal aid lawyer. The Legal Aid Office of the Dendermonde bar, which holds sessions in Aalst, decides on that.

Example prices
ServiceIncl. VAT
First meeting30 minutes, at the office, by phone or by video€121Excl. VAT €100
Hourly rateper lawyer, charged per quarter hour started€229.90Excl. VAT €190
Formal demanda registered letter for an unpaid invoice€181.50Excl. VAT €150
Leasedrafting or review, home or business premises€302.50Excl. VAT €250
Divorce by mutual consentwithout property, all documents and the hearingfrom€1,452Excl. VAT €1,200

Office costs: 5 % of the fee. Court costs such as the registry fee, a bailiff or an expert come on top; we tell you beforehand what to expect.

Example prices for a fictional firm. Belgian lawyers charge 21 % VAT.

Office

The office

The blue front door of a town house, with a wrought-iron grille, three bluestone steps and a blank name plate by the bell
A long table with white chairs behind a glass wall with a frosted band

A town house in the centre of Aalst, ten minutes' walk from the station. Meetings take place in the meeting room on the ground floor, behind a closed door.

If the three steps at the front door are hard for you, say so when you book. We then meet by video or come to you.

Address
Aalst (fictional firm, no address)
Getting here
10 minutes on foot from the station
Parking
paid, on the street and in the town-centre car parks
Meetings
by appointment, also by phone or video
A narrow cobbled lane between limewashed brick houses with a church tower at the end, in black and white

Contact

A question without an appointment

A fountain pen on white paper

Kouterpoort Advocaten

Aalst

Dear Sir or Madam,

For a general question, or an appointment you would rather not book online, call the secretariat. Please do not email us documents or details of your matter before we have spoken.

If you are involved in a matter in which we act for the other side, we cannot help you. We check this before the first meeting.

Yours faithfully,

Hanne

for Kouterpoort Advocaten

Phone
shown here on a real site
Email
shown here on a real site
Secretariat
working days 9.00–12.30 and 13.30–17.30

In an emergency, call 112. If you are questioned as a suspect, you generally have the right to consult a lawyer first.

Prepare a first meeting