Family lawyer
As of November 1, 2016, Sophie has joined LINK Advocaten. At the Amsterdam office she deals with all aspects of family law and inheritance law.
Sophie Zeilstra is active in all areas of Dutch family and inheritance law. She has a special interest in adoption cases, cross-border legal parentage issues and assistance regarding surrogate motherhood.
Sophie works from the Amsterdam office and is active in all areas of Dutch family and inheritance law. In addition to national and cross-border divorce cases, she handles custody and maintenance disputes. She has a special interest in adoption cases, cross-border legal parentage issues and assistance regarding surrogate motherhood.
The many sides of family law
Family law is multi-faceted. A divorce often involves multiple branches of the law. Family-law issues directly affect the personal lives of those involved, both emotionally and financially. It is this combination that Sophie finds particularly interesting.
Sophie always seeks to find an equitable solution that is supported by both parties, now and going into the future. “The aim is to prevent the parties from having to return to court in a year’s time, at daggers drawn”. This nonetheless proves impossible in some cases, which requires her to put forward a well-structured argument in legal proceedings. This is what Sophie is committed to doing.
Collaboration with clients
The ability to provide clients with good legal assistance in family-law disputes requires a sound working relationship. In Sophie’s view, lawyers and clients can work together well if there is mutual trust and clients feel free to open up. Managing expectations is also important, as it helps to remove uncertainty about the strategy in a case. “What has struck me is that most people are not aware of the legal consequences of a marriage, let alone of a divorce.” Clients can be unpleasantly surprised when you advise them on this.
Education and other activities
Sophie Zeilstra studied law at Utrecht University. From early on in her studies Sophie took a special interest in family and inheritance law. It was only natural for her to complete her degree by researching the maintenance obligation of step-parents in blended families.
Before joining LINK Advocaten, Sophie gained practical experience in the field of family law at a boutique law firm and at the legal advice centre in Utrecht within the law of persons and family law practice group. She has witnessed first-hand how family law can affect the very essence of people’s lives.
Sophie is married and lives in Utrecht. Outside work, she enjoys travelling and cooking and keeps the Dutch-language blog De Juridische Keuken (The Legal Kitchen). Sophie is also active within the Young Bar Association of the Netherlands (Stichting Jonge Balie Nederland – SJBN), the national young lawyers’ association.
To contact Sophie Zeilstra, send her an email at szeilstra@linkadvocaten.nl or call her on +31 (0)20 2610 002.
