Petra Oskam
Specialisms
Medical malpractice / Employers liability / Motor liability & whiplash / Fraud / Accident & health / Coverage disputes.
Profile
Petra’s practice is aimed at advising and litigating for insurance companies. She also assists clients in mediation procedures. Thanks to her in-house experience at an insurer, she knows the sector from the inside out and knows how important hands-on advice is for daily practice. Petra also regularly advises foreign law firms and insurers about personal injury cases with cross-border aspects.
Petra completed the postgraduate LSA/ Grotius Personal Injury specialization course and is vice president of the board of the Vereniging van Letselschade Advocaten (Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, LSA). She also serves on the Executive Committee of Kennedy Van der Laan. Petra is a member of the Pan European Organization of Personal Injury Law (PEOPIL).
She regularly publishes in journals like the Tijdschrift voor Vergoeding Personenschade (Magazine for Personal Injury Compensation) and the PPS-Bulletin, for example about whiplash cases and fraud in personal injury claims settlement.
She is a guest lecturer at VU University Amsterdam and the University of Groningen and teaches courses at several educational institutions.
Recommendations
The Legal 500 EMEA 2023 - Insurance - Tier 1
Kennedy Van der Laan advises on EU and Dutch financial regulation relating to insurance, as well as handling claims concerning casualty, property and engineering, and reviewing policies. The firm has a strong focus on claims and policy drafting, and clients include insurers, both domestic and international, insurance brokers, pools and loss adjusters. As a member of the international network of Global Access Lawyers, the firm has access to global expertise in insurance and liability law. The insurance practice is led by Chris van Dijk, Frits van der Woude, Peter van den Broek, Erik van Orsouw and Petra Oskam, with Jan Broekhuizen leading the regulatory insurance team. Marit van der Pool specialises in both defence and coverage work in professional indemnity and directors’ and officers’ liability matters.
The Legal 500 EMEA 2022 - Insurance - Tier 1
Reflective of Kennedy Van der Laan‘s presence in the insurance market, it generates mandates from a wide variety of clients, notably insurance companies active in the Netherlands, insurance brokers, loss adjusters, insurance brokers and corporates. The firm is highly active in insurance regulatory matters (an area that is led by Jan Broekhuizen), and it also provides assistance with policy drafting and reviews of policy wording. In addition, insurance claims are another key pillar of the practice; a name to note in this space is Peter van den Broek, whose workload includes international claims and construction-related coverage disputes. Frits van der Woude focuses on policy disputes and professional indemnity claims, and he is also an expert in in D&O liability and professional liability. Chris van Dijk and Petra Oskam are particularly well-known for their personal injury expertise. Erik van Orsouw is another experienced practitioner at the firm.
Armand Blondeel, Senior Expert Personenschade a.s.r.
"We have been working with Petra for over 13 years. She has successfully assisted us on Insurance & Liability matters regarding personal injury. She has proven to be extremely pragmatic, responsive, skilled, creative and strategic and has been a great partner in helping us solve all kinds of difficult cases, as well in court proceedings, as in mediation and reaching good settlements out of court. Petra always acts with a good eye for reaching a reasonable solution, doing justice to the case. Her professional work-style combined with her in depth knowledge and human touch make her an excellent sparring partner."
The Legal 500 EMEA 2020 - Insurance
The team at Kennedy Van der Laan 'provides practical solutions' and also stands out for its 'strong personal relationship' with clients. The firm has a strong record in advising on all aspects of Dutch and European financial services regulation applicable to insurers, brokers and other insurance distributors, as well as assisting with claims and reviewing policy wordings. The 'experienced' Peter van den Broek specialises in product recall. For corporate insurance matters, Jan Broekhuizen is the name to note and Erik van Orsouw leads on work with insurance brokers and intermediaries. Also recommended are Chris van Dijk, Frits van der Woude, Petra Oskam and senior associate Mark Wisse.
Recent Work
- Assisted a Dutch insurance company in mediation regarding a large claim from a freelancer.
- Litigated for an insurer in a case concerning 'loss of a chance' in case of medical liability.
- Litigated for a Dutch insurer in a personal injury case concerning the appeal to a 'deliberate damage' clause.
- Frequently litigates for insurers in sub-disputes about whiplash, causality and fraud.