Emma Merkx focuses on the various aspects of family law. Emma has a strongly analytical mind but never loses sight of the human aspects of a case.
She graduated with honours in her Master’s degree in Law, specialising in Juvenile Law, from Leiden University in September 2014. This was in addition to the two Bachelor’s degrees she earned, in Law and Notarial Law. During her studies, Emma was a member of the faculty board of the Leiden University Faculty of Law and she also worked at the Supreme Court of the Netherlands. After graduating, Emma gained work experience as a researcher at the Ministry of Justice on St. Maarten and as a legal adviser at the certified De Jeugd- & Gezinsbeschermers organisation in Haarlem. She then worked as a registrar at the The Hague District Court. This gave her good insight into the work of judges; her experience has enabled her to clearly view cases from both sides. In April 2018, Emma made the move to legal practice, joining SmeetsGijbels.
Emma is a member of the Alumni Committee Juvenile Law of Leiden University. She also regularly publishes about topics in the area of family law in magazines and manuals.
Since May 2022, Emma has been a candidate-member of the ‘Nederlandse Vereniging van Familie- en erfrecht Advocaten Scheidingsmediators’ (vFAS).
Emma Merkx has a listing in the Netherlands Bar register for the following principal and secondary fields of law:
- Personal and family law (divorce, maintenance, visitation rights, youth protection law, 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.
