Doing Business in the Netherlands 2012 - American Chamber of ...

After the statement of defense is submitted, additional briefs may
subsequently be exchanged, or the court may order a hearing for the
parties to appear in person. The purpose of such hearing usually is
threefold: for the parties (i) to supply information to the court, (iii) to
argue their case before the court and (iii) to attempt to reach a
settlement.
The parties’ briefs are filed at a docket session, which is a district
court session held specifically for the purpose of filing briefs and
making formal procedural requests. After the briefs have been
exchanged, a hearing for oral arguments before the court may be held
if either of the parties so requires. If there has already been an
opportunity for oral argument during the hearing mentioned above, the
court may deny a request for oral argument.
Appeal proceedings are initiated by the service of a notice of appeal
(within three months from the district court’s judgment). In principle,
only two briefs are exchanged. In the appellant’s brief, the party filing
the appeal explains why it disagrees with the judgment passed in first
instance. The opponent may file an answer, which is often followed
by a hearing for oral arguments. The appeal is heard by a three judge
panel.
The course of the proceedings, both in the first instance and on appeal,
may be complicated by several motions on procedural issues (such as
a motion on jurisdiction) and/or by ordering witnesses examinations
or expert opinions.
24.3 Summary Proceedings
In urgent cases, a judge of the district court may sit in summary
proceedings to provide provisional relief. There are few restrictions
on the type of dispute that may be heard. Summary proceedings are
even used to obtain a payment order for essentially undisputed claims.
Summary proceedings are usually done with dispatch. At the
plaintiff’s request, the court will schedule a date for the summary
256 Baker & McKenzie