Deadline monitoring · professional capacity · rights of audience
Professional indemnity insurance (BAV) for a self-employed lawyer
Most claims against a self-employed lawyer are not about a wrong legal analysis, but about a date that has passed. A missed deadline is irreversible and the loss is immediately the full claim.
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Deze pagina in het Nederlands: Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering voor een zelfstandige jurist.
The calculator and the quote form below are in Dutch. Prefer to do this in English? Email info@finassverzekert. nl or call 072 - 509 24 56 and we will take it from there.
Work out for yourself what it would cost.
Enter your details; you will receive a proposal within one working day.
- We compare the offerings of several insurers
- An adviser checks whether the cover suits your activities
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
As a self-employed lawyer you supply analyses, court documents, contracts and advice. If something goes wrong there, your client suffers a financial loss without anything being damaged or anyone injured: pure financial loss. That is exactly what professional indemnity insurance is for; how it works in general is set out on the hub page on the BAV. The standard is that of a reasonably competent and reasonably acting professional, derived from the duty of care in Article 7:401 of the Dutch Civil Code.
The loss profile in this profession is sharply defined. A limitation period for challenging a dismissal, the two-month period for a notice of objection, a limitation that has not been interrupted as Article 3:317 of the Dutch Civil Code requires, a complaint period under Article 6:89 of the Dutch Civil Code that passes unused: in all those cases the claim falls away and the loss equals what the client could have recovered. Arguing about whether that claim had good prospects costs money. That defence is part of the cover and often more important than the payment itself.
Pay close attention to your business activity on the policy schedule. A lawyer is not an advocate: in cases where representation by an advocate is compulsory, conducting proceedings is reserved to advocates. If you nonetheless advise or act beyond that line, the loss is generally not covered because you carried out work that does not fall within your insured professional capacity. The same applies if, alongside legal advice, you also do tax advice, debt collection or administration of estates: have every area of law and every role expressly included.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Compare professional indemnity insurance (BAV).
Four points that determine your cover
What makes the difference for a self-employed lawyer between a covered and a rejected claim.
Keeping track of deadlines is your biggest risk
When you apply, insurers almost always ask how you monitor deadlines. A diary with double alerts and a recorded handover for holidays or illness are not a formality: if you are off work and a deadline expires in that period, there is no one to notice. As a one-person practice you have no colleague looking over your shoulder, and that is precisely what makes a written locum arrangement worthwhile.
Claims-made: the moment of notification counts, not the mistake
Virtually every BAV covers the claim made against you during the policy period, not the mistake you made at the time. Without retroactive cover, files predating the commencement date fall outside the policy. If you close your practice or take a job, arrange run-off cover before you cancel: a client can still bring a claim against you years later, because under Article 3:310 of the Dutch Civil Code a claim is only time-barred five years after he becomes aware of the loss and of the liable party.
Your own hours and fee stay outside the cover
Drawing up a contract again, rewriting advice or refunding your fee are not insured losses. What is covered is what your client loses in addition: a claim that is lost, duplicated legal costs, a settlement that came out more expensive. Also, fines and penalty payments imposed on your client are excluded on virtually every policy, because they are a penalty and not compensation.
Working on secondment calls for a separate agreement
If you temporarily fill a legal post at a client, the question is whether you fall under its cover or remain insured yourself. Unlike an employee, you cannot rely on the limitation in Article 7:661 of the Dutch Civil Code; as a self-employed professional you carry your own liability. Record in writing for each engagement whose policy takes the lead and whether an indemnity applies.
What does your premium depend on?
- Annual turnover from legal work: the usual basis for calculating a BAV
- Areas of law: employment law and debt collection weigh differently from company law
- Type of clients: private individuals, SMEs or large corporates
- Size of the interests at stake: the value of the files determines the loss potential
- Retroactive period: how far back current files are included
- General terms used: a valid limitation of liability reduces the risk
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is covered
| Situation | AVB | BAV |
|---|---|---|
| In a dismissal case you do not claim fair compensation and the period for doing so has passed | No | Yes |
| A settlement agreement you drew up costs your client his entitlement to a benefit | No | Yes |
| An opposing party brings a claim against you personally over statements in a court document | No | Yes |
| A client falls on the stairs to your home office | Yes | No |
| You levy a third-party attachment for a client on a party that turns out to owe nothing | No | Provided that |
| Your client wants his fee back because the court document had to be written again | No | No |
Debt collection and attachment work is assessed separately. If it is not in your professional capacity, the claim is not covered.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
Does the limitation of liability in my general terms work?
Only if you can show that you handed those terms over before or when the engagement was concluded, as Article 6:233(b) and Article 6:234 of the Dutch Civil Code require. A reference at the foot of an invoice is too late. With a private client, a limitation that goes too far can also fail on consumer protection grounds. So send your terms with the engagement confirmation and keep proof of dispatch.
Am I covered if I represent a client in proceedings?
That depends on your professional capacity. In subdistrict court cases and administrative law proceedings you may act. In cases where representation by an advocate is compulsory that is reserved to advocates. If you take such a case on anyway, you are carrying out work outside your insured professional capacity and a claim about it is generally not covered. See also the page on professional liability for advocates.
When do I have to report a possible mistake?
As soon as you can reasonably suspect that a claim will follow. Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code requires you to inform the insurer as soon as possible. Do not wait until the client formally holds you liable: many policies allow you to notify a circumstance, which brings a later claim under the cover in force at that time. Admit no liability before you have consulted the insurer.
Do I need another liability policy alongside a BAV?
As soon as you visit clients, injury or damage to property can arise: a screen knocked over, a client's laptop damaged. That is not pure financial loss and falls outside the BAV. For that there is liability insurance for self-employed professionals. If you lose client data through a hack, that belongs on a cyber insurance.
Read more
Within Beroepsaansprakelijkheidsverzekering
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