Krzemiński specialises in enforcement and attachment law, security rights and procedural law. Enforcement and attachment law provides the framework for debt recovery and the enforcement of court decisions and arbitral awards, which includes the attachment and foreclosure of debtors' assets. Enforcement and attachment law forms an essential part of the rule of law; after all, citizens must be able to rely on the fact that court decisions will be enforced, contracts will be performed and debts will be paid. At the same time, enforcement and attachments deals with relevant social issues, such as systemic debt problems and the complexity and high cost of recovering undisputed claims. This touches on the issues of access to justice and the proper administration of justice. It also affects the position of the court bailiff, who has a central role in Dutch enforcement and attachment law. As independent civil servants, court bailiff perform enforcements and attachments measures, thereby maintaining the balance between enforcement of legal rights and legal protection.

As a professor by special appointment at the University of Amsterdam, Krzemiński will conduct research and teach courses in the field of enforcement and attachment law, with specific focus on the position of bailiffs. He will fulfil this position part-time alongside his legal practice. In his research, Krzemiński will focus, amongst other things, on the fundamental legal protection of both creditors and debtors, the effectiveness of Dutch enforcement law for the realisation of legal rights, and the remedy of practical bottlenecks in existing enforcement and attachment regulations, also from an international and comparative law perspective. The curriculum of the Amsterdam Law School has strong focus on how the law works in practice, and how it can make an impact. Drawing upon his practical experience, Krzemiński can give students insight into the difference between ‘the law in books’ and ‘the law in action’ in civil procedures.

Practice and academia

‘The combination of legal practice and academia is particularly important in enforcement and attachment law,’ says Krzemiński. ‘It deals with the factual realisation of legal rights, if needs be under force of law. This touches on questions about the proper administration of justice, legal protection and access to justice, which require a more fundamental assessment. Moreover, enforcement and attachment law is continuously developing and the topic of broad public debate. I look forward to contributing to this debate with my research.’

‘One of our leading litigation & arbitration lawyers, Kasper is able to consistently come up with innovative legal solutions to complex matters and tackle complicated problems with perseverance. These skills ensure that he is among the top practitioners in his field and, we are convinced, will serve him well in his academic career. Our firm has a longstanding tradition of combining the practice of law with academia. This combination ensures that students can benefit from our practical experience in the legal profession while clients can benefit from a broader perspective thanks to our academic experience,’ says Jaap Jan Trommel, managing partner NautaDutilh.

Sjef van der Putten, vice-chairman of the KBvG and member of the chair's curatorium: ‘There is now a chair with special attention for the position of the bailiff. Of course, this chair belongs in the UvA's Amsterdam Centre on the Legal Professions and Access to Justice (ACLPA). After all, access to justice is the bailiff's core task. On the one hand, by summoning parties and making law accessible by providing explanation at the door. On the other hand, by enforcing court decisions if these are not voluntarily complied with. We are looking forward to Krzemiński's contributions to the academic and public debate, and are convinced that these will make great strides in enforcement and attachment law and towards a more just and effective enforcement law in the Netherlands.’

About Kasper Krzemiński

Krzemiński (1981) is a partner at NautaDutilh in Rotterdam, where he focuses on commercial litigation and arbitration. He combines his legal work with a broad scientific interest. In 2013, he obtained his doctorate (cum laude) from Erasmus University Rotterdam alongside his legal practice. Since then, Krzemiński has frequently taught and published on enforcement and attachment law, security rights and civil procedure. He is inter alia co-author of the authoritative textbook on Dutch security rights (Asser 3-VI Zekerheidsrechten) and contributor to Tekst & Commentaar Burgerlijke Rechtsvordering (a commentary on Dutch civil procedure). Since 2019, he has also served as Secretary General of P.R.I.M.E. Finance, an international arbitration institute for complex financial disputes. NautaDutilh is an international law firm with offices in Luxembourg, Brussels, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, London and New York.