Every conflict deserves a customised solution. In addition to the traditional litigation practice, I also truly believe in a connecting approach. In addition to being a lawyer, I am also an MfN registered mediator. Despite being each other’s opposites, these two roles are made for me. My genuine interest in the underlying conflict and my investment in the relationship give parties the confidence that they are in good hands with me. As a lawyer, I determine the approach to each case, naturally bearing my client’s interest in mind. As a mediator, it’s simple: I’m impartial and I follow the approach that befits an MfN registered mediator and my personality.
Jolanda de Groot has been an employment lawyer since 2002 and also an MfN registered mediator for some time. These two roles are in fact opposites. She is partisan as a lawyer, but impartial as a mediator. Jolanda considers this an interesting challenge and a pleasant variation in her daily practice.
As a lawyer, Jolanda deals with employment law in the broadest sense. She conducts a broad advisory and litigation practice, and advises mostly employers as well as senior employees. The issues she deals with include reorganisations, dismissal cases, the supervision of improvement plans, employee participation, directors under the articles of association, issues relating to employment conditions and their implementation or amendment, flexible employment relationships, and cross-border labour (including immigration and secondment issues).
Jolanda is furthermore an MfN registered mediator. On the basis of a sincere interest in the persons at the negotiating table, she helps them conduct an open and honest conversation in a safe and confidential setting. This often makes it possible to discuss interests rather than sticking to points of view – all of this with the aim of reaching a lasting solution that represents both parties’ interests. Jolanda can be engaged for employment law issues such as a current or imminent labour conflict regarding the cooperation with colleagues or managers, between directors or with a works council, regarding an employee’s performance or incapacity for work. She can also play a role in international relations, since the mediation can take place in English and she is sensitive to possible cultural differences. Conflicts in business services, between the company and its suppliers or other partners, are also suitable for mediation.
With Jolanda it’s what you see is what you get. Her personal and committed approach creates trust and is characterised by a flexible approach. Jolanda enters into long-term relationships with her clients. This also means that she is not only a conflict solver for her clients, but also a sparring partner who is engaged in various stages of projects in an HR, employment-law or organisational level within the company.
Jolanda completed the PALA postgraduate employment law course cum laude in 2007. She is a member of the Dutch Employment Lawyers Association (VAAN), the Dutch Employment Law Association (VvA) and the Dutch Association of Mediation Lawyers (NVVMA). She is furthermore registered as an employment law specialist in the Register of Legal Practice Areas of the Dutch Bar Association and is registered in the MfN Register of Certified Mediators. Jolanda conducts her practice in Dutch and English.