Willem Bosma

Practice Areas

Willem’s practice includes advising and litigating for various parties within the areas of planning and environmental law and real estate law. He advises clients both from a legal as a strategic perspective in projects or transaction. Eventual civil and administrative litigation is second nature to Willem.

Willem specialises in spatial planning law, environmental law related to facilities (inrichtingen), REACH, substances of very high concern, land use policy, in particular expropriation, the Dutch Act on Preferential Rights of Municipalities (Wvg), long-term ground lease, and land exploitation, and energy law.

He acts on behalf of property developers, investors, businesses in the (chemical) industry, utility companies, and parties active in (sustainable) energy projects. His clients further include local and regional authorities, such as municipalities, provinces, and environmental services.

Professional Memberships

Member of the Dutch Association for Expropriation Lawyers

Member of the Dutch Association for Expropriation Law

Member of the Dutch Association for Construction Law

Member of VAR (Association for Administrative Law)

Member of the Dutch Association for Environmental Law

Work Highlights

- Advising various project developers on natural gas-free building and construction;

- Advising both strategically and legally on various areas for development, including the areas of Wickevoort Haarlemmermeer and Koningsoord Berkel-Enschot in Tilburg, Noorderhaven in Zutphen, and Othene in Terneuzen;

- Acting on behalf of the Municipality of Dordrecht with regard to the establishment of the zoning plan “Zuidrand van Dubbeldam”. Pursuant to this zoning plan, the development of Belthure Park (a project consisting out of 220 houses and a golf course) Is no longer possible. The Judicial Division of the Council of State, has ruled that the Municipality was authorized to amend the existing zoning plan in favour of maintaining the green polder landscape;

- Advising Tata Steel regarding the emissions of dust and graphite, which are released during the handling of iron slags and have regularly spread to neighboring communities (Wijk aan Zee) and caused unrest under its inhabitants ("graphite rain"), thereby also causing much media attention;

- Representing the province of Zuid Holland concerning the environmental permits of Chemours/DuPont in Dordrecht related to the desired reduction in the exhaust of GenX.

Industry Sector Expertise

Willem is the author of books on planning and environmental law (VIND Omgevingszaken (Grondexploitatie)) and administrative law (VIND Bestuursrecht (Wvg)), and multiple Dutch law journals regularly publish his comments on court decisions. Additionally, Willem enjoys lecturing on various subjects related to his practice (inter alia long-term ground lease on account of the Berghauser Pont Academy, and on land exploitation for the Dutch Academy for the Practice of Law (Academie voor de Rechtspraktijk)).

Languages Spoken

Dutch, English, German, French and Swedish