TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Version No. 4 applicable as from 1st February 2024
“Prioux Culot + Partners” (hereinafter “PC+P”) is a law firm formed by the five following partners (each of them being hereinafter referred to as “Lawyer”) :
+ SRL Raphael Prioux de Baudimont (BCE 0447.165.743 – Avenue Louise 326 box 26, 1050 Brussels)
+ SRL TP Law (BCE 0895.299.904 – Avenue Louise 326 box 26, 1050 Brussels)
+ SRL Ars Aequi (BCE 0780.705.884 – Avenue Louise 326 box 26, 1050 Brussels)
+ SRL AH Legal (BCE 0715.716.28 – Avenue Louise 326 box 26, 1050 Brussels)
+ SRL OM Law (BCE 1003.694.434 – Avenue Louise 326 box 26, 1050 Brussels)
The Lawyer can be reached as follows: T : +32 2 486 73 40, E : info@priouxculot.com, or at the specific contact details laid down on our website www.priouxculot.com.
1. Scope
These Terms and Conditions apply to any service accepted and performed by a Lawyer on behalf of a Client (the « Mission »), unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Parties. By having recourse to a Lawyer for a Mission, the Client agrees to these Terms and Conditions, available online at www.priouxculot.com. These Terms and Conditions are also applicable when the Client is a consumer, subject to the mandatory or public policy provisions of the laws protecting the interests of consumers.
2. Commitments of the Parties
The agreement binds the Lawyer concerned and the Client on an individual basis, without involving any obligation to any other Lawyers. The Lawyer undertakes to use the means available to him/her in accordance with the ethical rules of the Bar Association to which he/she is accountable in order to perform the Mission assigned by the Client. The Lawyer is only bound by an obligation of means, subject to the communication without delay by the Client of the information necessary for the execution of the Mission as well as to the payment of the fees, expenses, and disbursements referred to in Article 3.
3. Fees & Expenses
Unless otherwise agreed, the fees are calculated on the basis of the number of hours worked at an hourly rate communicated to the Client and specific to each file. Upon specific request, the Lawyer may consider a lump-sum, a subscription or a result-based invoicing system depending on the specificity of the Mission. The amounts are increased by the applicable VAT, i.e. currently at the rate of 21%. Unless otherwise agreed, general office costs are not charged to the Client. Disbursements and expenses specific to the case (registry, experts, registered mail, travel, etc.) are charged “at cost” or according to a lump-sum price specifically agreed with the Client. The bailiff’s costs are invoiced by the bailiff to the Client who is directly liable to the bailiff for the amount due.
4. Payment
The fees of the Lawyer concerned as well as the expenses incurred on behalf of the Client will be periodically charged to the Client. Unless otherwise agreed, the invoices will be issued on a PDF document and sent to the Client by email. All invoices are due within fifteen days from their sending date. Any complaint related to an invoice must be notified to the Lawyer within the same delay, failing which, the invoice will be irrevocably deemed to be accepted by the Client. The default of payment shall automatically and without formal notice give rise to an interest at the rate of 10% per year, as well as a lump sum indemnity of 10% of the amounts due with a minimum of 100 EUR. In case of default of payment within the abovementioned period, the Lawyer reserves the right to suspend further services subject to prior notification to the Client.
5. Liability
The intervention of the Lawyer is for the sole benefit of the Client and only for the Mission concerned. The Lawyer is not liable for the use of his/her work by third parties or by the Client in any context other than the Mission. The Lawyers are separate entities and, except for the cases that are treated jointly by several Lawyers, no Lawyer can be held liable for the acts of another Lawyer. The liability of the Lawyer is limited to the actual amount covered by his/her professional liability insurance policy/-ies and cannot in any case exceed the amount of the fees paid for the execution of the Mission. The Lawyer assumes no liability when all or part of the Mission is entrusted, at the request and with the agreement of the Client, to a lawyer that is not a partner of PC+P, with the exception of the associate lawyers identified on the website of PC+P: www.priouxculot.com.
6. Insurance
Each Lawyer is covered by a professional liability insurance subscribed by the Brussels Bar Association with the insurance company ETHIAS (Rue des Croisiers, 24, 4000 Liège, T: 04 220 31 11 – FSMA 0165) whose minimum ceiling currently amounts to 2.500.000 EUR.
7. End of the Mission
The Client may terminate the Lawyer’s Mission at any time, subject to the payment of all fees due for the services completed or already initiated. The Lawyer may terminate his/her Mission at any time, subject to a reasonable notice.
8. Prevention of Money Laundering
The Lawyer has to comply with legal obligations in terms of prevention of money laundering which may require him/her to file a statement of suspicion to the President of the Bar Association to which he/she belongs. To this end, the Client undertakes to communicate on first demand the information requested by the Lawyer. The default of communication of the information requested entitles the Lawyer to suspend the performance of his/her services.
9. Confidentiality
The Lawyer is subject to a duty of professional secrecy. The Client undertakes to respect, where applicable, the confidentiality of the documents communicated to the Client.
10. Intellectual Property
Any document transmitted to the Client by PC+P or by a Lawyer remains the intellectual property of its author(s) and cannot be used or reproduced without the prior written consent of the author(s). These documents cannot be used by the Client in any context other than the Mission without the express consent of the author(s).
11. Personal Data Protection
The personal data of the Client shall be processed in accordance with the privacy policy Charter published on the website of PC+P: www.priouxculot.com.
12. Invalidity & Severability
The invalidity or unenforceability of any provisions of these Terms and Conditions shall not affect the validity or the enforceability of the other provisions. In this case, the invalid provision will be deemed to be automatically replaced by a valid provision producing, as far as possible, a similar legal and economic effect.
13. Governing law & Jurisdiction
Any dispute between the Lawyer and the Client relating to the Mission shall be governed by Belgian Law and shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the French-speaking jurisdictions of Brussels.
In case of any inconsistency or discrepancy between the French and the Dutch/English version of these Terms and Conditions, the French version shall prevail over the Dutch/English version.