Do not hesitate to contact Versteegh Advocaten. Based on our many years of experience, we can inform, advise and, if necessary, assist you in all kinds of matters concerning Family law.

Our experienced lawyers can advise you, negotiate with the other party or parties involved and, if necessary, start proceedings.

Knowing where you stand with personalized legal assistance. That is what Versteegh Advocaten can offer you. Do you need legal assistance now? Or do you wish to obtain advice without any obligation? Call one of our lawyers immediately (in urgent situations also possible outside office hours). You can also fill in the contact form.

Divorce

A divorce is often emotional and has a deep impact on your life. Often a lot has to be arranged. There are three kinds of divorces, which are: divorce, ‘separation from table and bed’ (solely financial divorce) and dissolution of the marriage after a separation from table and bed. A divorce is requested by means of a petition, which can only be filed by a lawyer. Therefore, a lawyer is always needed for this procedure.

Dissolution of registered partnership

Without minor children, the registered partnership can be dissolved without a court procedure. However, you will have to agree with each other and sign a dissolution agreement in which the financial arrangements are laid down. If this is not possible, it still has to be done through the courts. If you have minor children, a court procedure is inevitable and you will have to agree upon a parenting plan. If this fails, the judge will decide on the principal residence of the children, the care arrangement, the information arrangement and the child support. Such proceedings can only be initiated by a lawyer.

Child support

Legal parents are obliged to contribute to the maintenance of their children. You are a legal parent if you are the biological mother, have acknowledged a child or if a child was born within marriage or a registered partnership. Whether child support is actually payable, and how much, depends on the needs of the child and the ability of the parents to pay. Calculating child support is a matter of customization, and it is very important to make a proper calculation. The lawyers of Versteegh c.s. Advocaten will calculate the alimony for you and help you with the settlement.

Spousal support

If your ex-partner has insufficient income to support himself or herself after the divorce, he or she is entitled to spousal support. In principle, you are then obliged to pay spousal support. However, the judge does not only look at the financial situation of the person claiming alimony, but also at the financial situation of the person who should be paying. There must be sufficient financial capacity to make a contribution. It is important to make a calculation. If you cannot reach an agreement or if you have questions about spousal support, our family lawyers can help you.

Parenting plan

When a relationship involving children has ended, it is wise to draw up a parenting plan. If both parents have parental authority this is even required by Dutch law. In the parenting plan agreements are made about the main place of residence of the children, the division of care and parenting tasks, financial arrangements and how the parents will inform each other about important matters.

Custody

If the child is born within the marriage or registered partnership, both parents have parental authority by law. If there is no marriage or registered partnership, the father or co-mother must acknowledge the children and apply for custody to receive the same rights and obligations as the mother. The joint parental authority must be requested with the permission of the biological mother. If she does not want to cooperate you can ask the court to award you with the (joint) parental authority.

Contact or care arrangement

Good and regular contact between a parent and a child is of great importance for the development of a child. If the parent has acknowledged the child, the parent also has a right to this. Not only the parent has the right of access. Also people who have a close personal relationship with the child have a right to have contact in most cases. However, it can happen that access is not granted for any reason or that access is blocked by the other parent. In that case you can go to court and ask for a visitation arrangement to be made.

Establishing paternity

In some cases it is necessary to establish parental rights if the mother refuses to let you acknowledge the child. The court can establish paternity if the parent is the father of the child or if the mother’s partner gave consent for the child to be conceived. Often the court will ask for a DNA test to establish paternity.

Withdrawal of paternity

Children born within a marriage or registered partnership have a father and a mother or two mothers or fathers by law. It is of course also possible that you are not the biological father/mother of the child born within the marriage or registered partnership. The legal father, the mother and the minor child can in that case request the court to deny paternity.

Change of name

It is possible to ask the judge to change your first and/or last name. This can be done if you are not happy with your name for serious reasons or if your name has been incorrectly recorded in the registers of the civil registry. Please note that there are strict conditions attached to a change of name and a request for this is therefore not easily granted.

Relocation

When considering whether a parent can simply relocate their child, it is important first of all to consider whether there is joint custody. When parents have joint custody, the parent where the child has its main residence needs permission from the other parent to move. If this parent does not give permission, substitute permission can be requested from the judge. The parent where the child does not have the main residence can move without permission from the other parent. However, this can have consequences for the visitation.

International child abduction

Child abduction occurs when a child is taken to another country by one of the parents without the permission of the other parent with custody. If you are faced with this situation, do not hesitate to contact one of our lawyers as soon as possible.

Domestic violence

Domestic violence takes place in the private environment. It is committed by someone in the domestic circle, for example a parent, a sibling or a partner. Domestic violence can take the form of physical violence (hitting, kicking and assaulting), but also psychological violence (cursing, threatening, humiliating). Stalking can also be a form of domestic violence. If you are faced with a situation as described above, do not hesitate to contact one of our family law lawyers.

Restraining order

If you are being systematically harassed by another person, causing serious harm to your personal privacy, it is possible to request the civil court to impose a restraining order. This can be done through summary proceedings, which often lead to a hearing within a few weeks.