Carla Smeets is one of the most renowned lawyers and mediators in family law in the Netherlands, specialising in complex divorce and inheritance cases, both in the Netherlands and internationally. Carla works mostly on behalf of family offices and entrepreneurs. As a trusted adviser to her clients, and as a specialist in collaborative divorce, Carla Smeets takes the leading role in all her cases, devising effective strategies that leave no stone unturned in achieving settlements that are acceptable to both parties.
Carla graduated from Leiden University in 1986. She then specialised in personal and family law. In addition, she has been associated with the Private Clients departments of the renowned firm of NautaDutilh for a long time. Carla is a partner and founder of SmeetsGijbels.
Carla is a member and former board member of the ‘Nederlandse Vereniging Familie- en erfrecht Advocaten Scheidingsmediators’ (vFAS), a member of the International Academy of Family Lawyers (IAFL), a member of the Association of Collaborative Professionals (VvCP), and a member of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (IACP). She sat on various legislation advisory committees. For many years, Carla has been a deputy judge at the ‘s Hertogenbosch District Court.
Carla Smeets has a listing in the Netherlands Bar register for the following principal and secondary fields of law:
- Personal and family law (collaborative divorce, divorce, maintenance, visitation rights, international private law, mediation, parentage, and legitimation)
A condition of her registration is that, every calendar year, she is required to obtain ten study credits for each of the main fields of law for which she is listed, in accordance with the standards of the Netherlands Bar.
