Center of Maritime Affairs
Rotterdam Maritime Services Community – In the limelight
Born and raised in a fishermen family, Daan Komen always has had a passion for (everything that happens on and in) the sea. “The sea has always fascinated me. When I grew older, my brother took over my father’s fishing company. I chose to provide legal services as a maritime lawyer.” After landing his first legal job in 2013, he switched to the Rotterdam-based maritime law firm Van Steenderen MainportLawyers in 2016.
“Our firm serves clients all over the world. You can tell Rotterdam is at the center of maritime affairs. All kinds of (different) port-related companies are located in Rotterdam to do business.” Traditionally, the court of Rotterdam is specialized in shipping matters. Because of its expertise, the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure was amended as of January 1st 2017, which made it possible for the Rotterdam court to become the only court in the Netherlands to be able to handle shipping matters. Due to the international nature of shipping affairs, the Maritime Chamber of the Court of Rotterdam also offers parties the opportunity to litigate and publish summaries of their statements in English.“We really are the gateway to Europe. Developments like these make Rotterdam even more attractive for companies from abroad. To me, Rotterdam is the ultimate maritime hub, with terrific hinterland connections. And there is still room for expansion, just look at Maasvlakte II. Just wait and see, when the maritime sector will start to recover we can look forward to a bright future.”
“Talking about the future: for the success of the maritime business services sector in the years to come we’ll need a dedicated talent pool. This is why I’m part of the organizing committee of Young RMSC.” The committee is formed with two other young professionals: Niels Teeuw from HDI-Gerling and Robbert van Dijk from Crawford. “We joined forces with RSMC, because of their great network. At the same time, RMSC was looking for a younger department. Together we will expand our network and the professional platform.”
Young RMSC organizes and facilitates network events and branch specific lectures for young professionals in the field of maritime services. “Our aim is to share our knowledge and tell from our individual experiences, enabling our members to further develop their professional network. The events and gatherings are visited by RMSC’s members and we tend to invite maritime students, for instance from the Erasmus University. In this way, we try to give students a kick-start in forming their professional network within the maritime business services sector.”
