Mr Hugo Keulers > Lydian > Brussels, Belgium > Lawyer Profile

Combining ‘clear strategy with human touch and excellent communication’, the practice at Lydian has comprehensive expertise across all aspects of dispute resolution, spanning court proceedings, mediation, and arbitration. Distribution disputes, insurance litigation, and transport-related litigation are all strengths of the team. Leading the team from the Hasselt office are the ‘responsive and efficient’ Hugo Keulers and ‘very experienced’ Jo Willems. In Antwerp, Yves Lenders leads the team alongside Brussels-based Sandra Lodewijckx and Bastiaan Bruyndonckx.

The arrival of highly regarded business criminal law specialist Stijn Lamberigts in October 2023 strengthened Lydian’s offering in this field. Lamberigts co-heads the practice alongside insurance fraud expert Hugo Keulers, employment fraud specialist Jan Hofkens and Yves Lenders, who brings a wealth of experience in corporate criminal liability and insolvency matters. The varied expertise of the practice’s leaders allows the firm to tackle multi-jurisdictional matters across a wide range of issues. The team supports a diverse pool of companies in internal investigations as well as civil and criminal proceedings, with clients hailing from the financial services, tech, insurance, transport and media sectors.

Lydian is ‘simply the firm of reference for Belgian insurance law’, boasting ‘very specialised knowledge’. The practice works for a wide range of leading insurers and corporates, advising on reinsurance, corporate insurance, and life and non life insurance, often on high-profile or complex cases. Leading the team is Hugo Keulers, commended for being a ‘vessel of knowledge’, with commercial and dispute resolution expertise complementing his insurance practice. Also at leadership level is Sandra Lodewijckx, a ‘dynamic lawyer with an excellent knowledge of the insurance sector’. Together, the pair ‘represent the insurance encyclopedia’. Noted members of the team include the ‘highly knowledgeable and approachable’ Jo Willems, and ‘great lawyer’ Héloïse Fostier.

Lydian boasts a ‘strong team with excellent knowledge and technical skills‘ in the financial regulatory space, benefitting from the firm’s sizable insurance practice. The banking and finance team at the firm acts for large and medium-sized Belgian and international banks, investment funds, and leading corporates in regulatory finance matters. Investigations by regulatory bodies are a strength of the group, along with experience with Euroclear. The department is led by ‘true expert in his field‘ Tom Geudens, covering international banking, project finance, and capital markets. Sandra Lodewijckx and Hugo Keulers also form the leadership of the practice.