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Richard de Haan

Partner

Email

richard.dehaan@aoshearman.com

Phone

+31 20 674 1745

Offices

Amsterdam

V-CARD
Richard heads the Litigation department of A&O Shearman in Amsterdam.

He specialises in dispute resolution with an emphasis on corporate litigation, securities litigation and corporate governance related disputes. He has a wide range of experience in handling public and private M&A disputes, joint venture and shareholder disputes and director liability cases, amongst others before the Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Appeals in Amsterdam.

Richard advises and represents public and private companies, private equity firms, family offices, governmental bodies and managing and supervisory boards. He has over 20 years of experience in the field and is widely recognised as one of the leading corporate litigators in the Netherlands.

Richard joined the firm in 2000 and has worked in our Amsterdam and New York offices. He publishes regularly and is a member of the Dutch Association for Corporate Litigation. He is a member of the Supervisory Board of Rechtswinkel Amsterdam, a legal aid centre run by law students and teaches professional ethics at the Law Firm School.

Experience

Representative matters

Dutch Ministry of Finance on all litigation resulting from the expropriation by the Dutch State of SNS Reaal N.V., the fourth biggest bank-insurer in the Netherlands. The mandate included defending the Ministry against claims for compensation by former shareholders and bondholders of SNS Reaal in excess of EUR 2 billion and representing the Ministry in enquiry proceedings before the Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Appeals in Amsterdam.

CVC Capital on a high value take-over dispute in the online gambling sector.

DPA Group N.V. in litigation brought by minority shareholders on the lawfulness of a pre-wired asset sale implemented following the successful public bid for DPA Group N.V. by Gilde.

Head Sports in litigation brought against it by former minority shareholders following a forced demerger.

Abanca S.A. (EuroBic) on a USD 53 million claim brought against it in relation to its alleged role in a corporate fraud at Esperaza Holding B.V., a Dutch company controlled by Sonangol S.A. and holding an investment in Galp Energeia S.A.

Aegon Ltd in legal proceedings brought against it by three hedge funds following an amendment made after the termination of LIBOR in the terms of a USD 500 million perpetual bond issued by Aegon.

Various airline holding companies on a high-profile dispute with Schiphol Airport and the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure on the attempted restriction of the operational capacity of Schiphol Airport.

Bencis Capital Partners in a joint venture dispute in relation to one of its portfolio companies (enquiry proceedings before the Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Appeals in Amsterdam).

Salta Group (NCOI Group) in a post-closing take-over dispute.

CRH plc. in a EUR 13 mio post M&A earnout dispute.

A global financial institution in injunction proceedings in relation to a USD 10 mio first demand bank guarantee.

PostNL in litigation brought by several former stakeholders following PostNL’s merger with Sandd.

Regus plc. in a post-closing M&A dispute following its purchase of Spaces.

Sequa Petroleum N.V. in protracted litigation with former bondholders on the alleged unlawful conversion of bonds.

Giesbers Groep in a EUR 5 million post M&A earn-out dispute.

Published Work

  • Chapter on provisional measures in Handboek Enquêterecht, Serie vanwege het Van der Heijden Instutuut (175), chapter 29 ISBN 9789013167290 Wolters Kluwer 2022 (June 2022).
  • Annotation Court of Appeals Amsterdam Enterprise Chamber 4 June 2019, JOR 2020/29. On the authority of a court appointed temporary trustee of shares to transfer ownerhip of shares.
  • Annotation Dutch Supreme Court 22 September 2017, JOR 2018/30. On the correlation between professional disciplinary liability and civil liability for damages.
  • Annotation Dutch Supreme Court 31 March 2017, CRI c.s. / SNS c.s., JOR 2017/221. On the limitations of liability of a holding company for debts of a consolidated group company on the basis of 2:403 DCC.

Speaking Engagements

  • Speaker at the Allen & Overy Senior M&A Academy on the topic of earn-out disputes, February 2024.
  • Speaker on trends in enquiry proceedings at the Academy for Legal Practice, autumn 2023.
  • Guest Speaker on directors’ duties and liabilities in international group companies at a top50 management meeting of an internationally operating client, summer 2023.
  • Guest speaker on trends in corporate governance and supervisory directors’ duties at an event hosted by a private equity firm, spring 2023.
Recognition
“Richard de Haan is a go-to corporate litigator, very smart and no-nonsense”
Legal 500, 2024
“He is very sharp also good at seeing the other side of the issue. He is a very pleasant person to work with”
Chambers Global, 2024

Qualifications

Admissions

Admitted as advocaat, Netherlands, 2000

Listed in the register of legal practice areas of the Dutch Bar Association for Litigation.

Academic

Master of Laws, Dutch Law, University of Groningen, the Netherlands, 1999

Master of Laws, International Law, University of Groningen, the Netherlands, 2000

LLM, European Law, King’s College London, 2001

Languages

Dutch, English
Disclaimer
A&O Shearman was formed on May 1, 2024 by the combination of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Allen & Overy LLP and their respective affiliates (the legacy firms). Any matters referred to above may include matters undertaken by one or more of the legacy firms rather than A&O Shearman.