Intelligence services
“Jemand mußte Josef K. verleumdet haben,
denn ohne dass er etwas Böses getan hätte,
wurde er eines Morgens verhaftet.”
Franz Kafka, first sentence of ‘The trial’
In this practice group, lawyers with expertise in international, criminal and immigration law combine their knowledge and expertise to focus on cases involving the Dutch general and military intelligence services (the AIVD and the MIVD). Böhler is the only law firm in the Netherlands to focus explicitly on such cases.
The AIVD and the MIVD have the legal right to investigate individuals and organisations in those situations where there is reason to suspect that they may pose a potential threat to the state. In addition, these services conduct background investigations into candidates applying for certain positions within the Dutch government.
Both organisations use secretive working methods, which frequently involve a substantial invasion of individual privacy. This can have far-reaching and even damaging consequences. Böhler acts as a watchdog to ensure that these services do not exceed the limits of the law, and files lawsuits when they appear to have done so.
Current and past clients include animal rights activists, alleged radical Muslims (Samir A, the Hofstad Group, Al Aqsa, deportations of imams), the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), journalists from the Dutch paper De Telegraaf who were wiretapped, and civil servants and diplomats whose professional reputations have been damaged as a result of the AIVD’s screening procedures.
Lawyers
Victor Koppe, Michiel Pestman, Flip Schüller, Marq Wijngaarden, Tamara Buruma
