What is the exhibit obligation (exhibitieplicht) under Dutch law?

Dutch term: Exhibitieplicht | Legal basis: Article 843a Rv

The exhibit obligation (exhibitieplicht) under article 843a of the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure requires a party to produce specific documents or data that it holds if the requesting party has a legitimate interest, specifies the documents sufficiently, and has a legal relationship with the holder. It is the Dutch equivalent of a targeted document production order.

Unlike common-law discovery, the Dutch exhibit obligation is narrow: it does not allow fishing expeditions or broad document requests. The requesting party must identify the specific documents or categories of documents it needs and explain why. The court balances the interest in disclosure against confidentiality and proportionality concerns. Privileged documents (attorney-client communications) are protected.

Why it matters for international businesses

For international parties used to US or UK disclosure, the Dutch approach is more limited but can still be effective for obtaining specific critical evidence.