Balthazar Houtappel

Balthazar Houtappel (J.B. Houtappel) was born in Warsaw, but lives for almost all his life in The Netherlands. He studied law and Polish in Amsterdam and Warsaw. After graduating with a specialization in corporate law, Balthazar began his professional career at the NTI and the University of Leiden teaching trade law, amongst other things, before becoming a lawyer in 2004. He worked for two Rotterdam based law firms, Van Dunné Langelaar Golterman and Boonk Van Leeuwen. Balthazar also acted as a bankruptcy receiver untill September 2010. He works mainly in the fields of business and trade law, (CMR) transport and (ship)building manufacturing. He founded Houtappel Advocatenkantoor on the 1 August 2010.

Among Balthazar’s clients are also non-profit organisations and cultural institutions. Together with the foundation Varkens in Nood (Pigs in Need), he is one of the initiators of the “declaration of the rights of production animals”. This declaration was presented by the well known professor and ambassador of the foundation Paul Cliteur, to – who else – the pigs themselves. 

Balthazar is a member of the Board of the association of Dutch Polish Entrepreneurs (VPNO) and member of the Dutch Bar association. He is a  translator Polish-Dutch and gives lectures on litigation law. Balthazar has registrered the following principal (and secondary) legal practice areas in the Netherlands Bar's register of legal practices (rechtsgebiedenregister): Litigation law, Trade and Transport law. Based on this registration, he is required to fulfill the legal standards of the Netherlands Bar (obtaining ten training credits per calender year in each of these fields).