5 Years Of Dutch Class Actions Under The WAMCA: First Evaluation

The introduction of the Act on Collective Damages in Class Actions (Dutch acronym: WAMCA) in 2020 fundamentally changed the legal landscape for class actions in the Netherlands. Almost six years later, a consortium of Dutch universities has published a comprehensive report assessing WAMCA (the Report). A cursory reading of the Report might cause the reader to view the length of the preliminary phase of WAMCA proceedings to be the main take away. In this update, we will examine whether that is the right conclusion.

Objectives and key findings of the Report

The Report finds that the WAMCA appears successful in its central ambition to prevent a claim culture similar to the US and a proliferation of interest organisations and claims filed. Fewer actions were initiated under the WAMCA than under the pre-WAMCA regime and to date no cases have had to be dismissed based on an insufficient link with the Dutch legal sphere.