Public law
Traditionally, La Gro has had a large number of public sector clients and we are proud to act for more than 20 decentralised public entities, mainly municipalities. We have a team of 10 attorneys at law exclusively dealing with administrative law, who are specialists in all public sector-related subjects, in particular environmental law, subversion, supervision and enforcement, the interface between private and public law, scarce permits, grants, the Open Government Act, municipal law, public sector partnerships, and public sector liability.
Not only does our team have relevant substantive knowledge, but also in-depth knowledge and experience of how the public sector operates, and a sense of the administrative and political relationships.
Businesses also come across local authorities as regulators, supervisors, licensing authorities or contract parties, and in all these relationships, sound advice based on knowledge of the public sector and administrative law is indispensable. Our team assists not only local authorities, but also a large number of businesses and other organisations.
The dynamics of proceedings involving local authorities are determined by tight and often fatal deadlines, complex procedural rules and the involvement of a large number of parties and interests, such as competitors, local residents, interest groups, and sometimes even other local authorities. The stakes can be high: permits may be crucial for projects to go ahead, businesses may face being closed down, there may be raids, fines, or ‘naming and shaming’ resulting from the publication of decisions or damages suffered due to public sector actions. La Gro’s team of administrative attorneys at law is used to acting in this arena.
We are committed to building long-term, lasting relationships with our clients, and often work in multidisciplinary teams to expand our expertise by deploying specialists from other relevant areas such as real estate, privacy and data protection, and employment law.
Attorney at law
You can contact us for the following
When developing spatial projects or processes in respect of environmental plans, environmental permits, land exploitation, land transactions and expropriations, there is often a complex interplay between public and private parties.
We have a multidisciplinary team that masters the broad field of environmental law and other related areas, such as social housing law and housing allocation matters. Our specialists are happy to share their knowledge and act as sparring partners.
If a citizen or business fails to comply with the rules, the competent authority must take enforcement action in many cases, but as the rules and powers may be listed across various laws and regulations, this can make enforcement proceedings highly complex.
Our attorneys at law can help you understand and correctly apply the regulations regarding enforcement and can advise you on imposing penalties or administrative orders and proceeding with recovery actions.
Is the mayor authorised to impose an area ban? Is it possible to ban a football match or other event that has been identified as a security threat? Such considerations affect public order and safety of a city or region. They are often socially sensitive and can be legally complex.
Our Attorneys at law have vast experience and knowledge of public order and security rules and powers. We can advise local authorities on the most appropriate strategy and provide support in legal proceedings.
Another challenge affecting public entities is dealing with subversion, which for many municipalities, has been one of the focal points in recent years. Our specialists can advise on the application of Section 13b of the Dutch Opium Act and the Dutch Public Administration (Probity Screening) Act (Bibob), the imposition of area bans, and the drafting of emergency orders and emergency ordinances. When dealing with subversion, information gathering and sharing is key, which our privacy specialists can advise on.
Since the introduction of the Civil Servants (Standardisation of Legal Status) Act (Wnra) in the Netherlands, the legal status of civil servants has been brought more and more in line with that of employees in the private sector. Nevertheless, specific laws and regulations apply to decisions made by public entities, such as the appointment decision, dismissal decision, redeployment decision, salary decision, and disciplinary measures.
Our attorneys at law have been providing legal assistance to municipalities and other local authorities for many years, and can provide you with targeted advice on the legal status of civil servants. They know better than anyone what is going on within public entities.
Our Administrative Law Team assists a large number of businesses and local authorities in matters in respect of scarce permits, such as mooring permits, market permits, environmental permits for activities in restricted areas (formerly Wbr permits), and amusement arcade permits. We provide municipalities with relevant policies and regulations, and guide market players through application processes, and also frequently conduct litigation in respect of this matter.
