Collective actions and settlements continue to rise in the Netherlands and around the world. Claim organisations are bringing suits relating to an increasingly wide range of alleged breaches of law: from data protection to consumer law, from competition to environmental law. The Netherlands is an attractive jurisdiction for claimants seeking collective redress. That appeal has only grown after the Resolution of Mass Damage in Collective Action Act (known as the WAMCA) came into force on 1 January 2020. The WAMCA has transformed the Dutch collective action regime by allowing claims for monetary damages, introducing stricter admissibility requirements, and amending the procedure.

Three years after its introduction, the WAMCA still raises many questions. To provide some much-needed clarity, our Mass Claims team published a new edition of Unlocking the WAMCA: a practical guide to the new collective action regime in the Netherlands. In this second edition, they outline the key elements of the WAMCA and explain its application in practice, drawing on case law and De Brauw's ample experience in collective disputes. Looking ahead, this edition includes a discussion of the EU's Representative Actions Directive and its transposition into Dutch law, which will apply from 25 June 2023.

The guide can be downloaded here. Hard copies are also available. Please contact one of the experts below if you would like to receive a copy.