Parliamentary questions about the role of notary in land trade

According to Member of Parliament Faissal Boulakjar (D66), a power of attorney is often used in the transfer of land. He therefore wants to know from the relevant ministers whether mandatory information for buyers by the notary is desirable in these types of cases.

Shady land dealers divide up plots of land and sell them with the promise that construction will soon be permitted. This is often not the case. According to RTL Nieuws, tens of thousands of Dutch people are victims of this dubious land trade. This news prompted Boulakjar to submit parliamentary questions about the role of notaries in speculative land transactions.

Signals
Responses to parliamentary questions in 2021 revealed that the cabinet, at the time, did not recognize the signals that notaries were insufficiently protecting private individuals against risks associated with land investments. Boulakjar wants to know from the ministers whether this is still the case.

Duty of care
Civil-law notaries involved in speculative land transactions have a standard duty of care towards the buyers of those plots of land. Actively vetting the will, critically assessing the underlying transactions, and being alert to unexplained price increases are essential in this regard—in addition to maintaining an independent position vis-à-vis the seller. Because power of attorney is often used in practice for the transfer of land, Boulakjar questions whether civil-law notaries have sufficient options to fulfill this duty of care in such cases.

Disciplinary law
In his questions, Boulakjar cites several disciplinary cases against notaries involved in land transactions. According to him, disciplinary judges ruled very differently in similar cases. In that light, the D66 member questions whether a tightening of the law is necessary to achieve greater uniformity in disciplinary judges' assessments.