Leaving because of serious employer misconduct: prepare the dissolution route first

Leaving because of serious employer misconduct: prepare the dissolution route first

Do you want to leave because your employer has seriously damaged your position? Do not resign first assuming compensation will automatically follow. An employee’s court petition for dissolution and a resignation letter are different routes. Serious culpable conduct is a high legal threshold. Record the conduct, its cumulative context and why it necessitates departure, then have the requests and income risks assessed.

A mistake or unpleasant conflict is not automatically serious culpable conduct.

Conduct must also be considered together and in context.

Wanting to leave does not automatically establish transition or equitable compensation.

Decide between resignation and requesting dissolution

Through a resignation letter you terminate by notice yourself, where legally possible. Article 7:671c offers a different option: the employee may ask the subdistrict court to dissolve employment where circumstances make immediate or early termination equitable. This is no automatic departure form. The court assesses circumstances and requested consequences.

The [resignation guide](guide:zelf-ontslag-nemen) covers ordinary notice and its risks. This page concerns preparing your own court petition where serious accusations are made against the employer. Record anything already declared or signed. Seeking advice does not simply erase an earlier resignation, and an unconditional departure statement can change your starting position.

Describe facts and their link with departure

Create a timeline of conduct, complaints, responses and work consequences. Go beyond a label such as “being bullied out”: identify actions, people and evidence. Which task or information was removed, what was said, which agreement failed and how did the employer respond to a report or complaint? Distinguish personal observation from what others told you.

For equitable compensation on this route, examine the link to serious culpable acts or omissions: why is termination necessary because of them? An unrelated error does not automatically support the same entitlement. Include your own responses and alternative explanations. Your adviser can then assess supporting facts and what the employer will probably dispute.

Have the whole picture assessed rather than isolated incidents

In 2022 the Dutch Supreme Court emphasised that all circumstances must be considered together, both for the employee’s petition and serious culpability. A file must therefore not be split into isolated events without considering their combination. This does not mean every series of careless actions automatically reaches the high threshold.

Organise repetition, earlier reports and missed recovery opportunities. Keep complete correspondence even if one sentence alone appears helpful. A message’s meaning depends on its cause and reply. The [workplace conflict guide](guide:arbeidsconflict) can clarify ordinary repair arrangements; for this route explain why such arrangements appear insufficient, without suggesting every failed discussion creates compensation rights.

Separate safety, health and ongoing duties

If health is affected, follow sickness reporting and discuss limitations with the occupational physician. A dissolution petition is no medical assessment. The [sickness guide](guide:ziekte) covers ordinary rights and duties; additionally assess early termination consequences here. Otherwise continuing wages may be relinquished without certain replacement benefit.

Unsafe conditions or misconduct may require immediate protective measures; seek appropriate assistance and document the report. Alleging serious employer conduct does not permit abandoning every work arrangement or taking business files without assessment. Record responsible cooperation you can offer and the specific missing protection. Immediate measures and the legal issue of permanent departure can proceed alongside each other.

Specify requests and financial risks

Discuss contract type and early termination clause. Article 7:671c contains its own compensation framework for fixed-term contracts without early notice rights, which can also create employee risks. A dissolution petition is not automatically financially neutral simply because you want to leave. Assess the desired end date and consequences separately.

The [transition payment](guide:transitievergoeding) and any equitable compensation are separate entitlements. Where the employee initiates the proceedings, the statutory basis for a transition payment differs from ordinary employer dismissal. Ask what must be substantiated and which ancillary claims are involved. If the court intends to dissolve the contract on your petition but without the equitable compensation you requested, the withdrawal mechanism in Article 7:686a(7), read with paragraph 6, matters. Before pronouncing that dissolution, the court must notify you of its intention and set a period within which you, as petitioner, may withdraw. Paragraph 6 also provides for advance notice and a withdrawal period where the proposed dissolution carries compensation. There is no statutory cooling-off period of a fixed length for every case and no general right to revoke a dissolution already finally pronounced. Have the precise proposed decision and judicial deadline assessed immediately.

Prepare instructions and the court file

Use the [case-file builder](tool:dossier-builder) for a short timeline with numbered evidence. Include contract, relevant payslips, complaints, responses and earlier proposals. Use [finding a lawyer](tool:advocaat-zoeken) to prepare specialist assessment of route, evidence and deadlines. A lawyer is not mandatory in the subdistrict court, but linking an employee’s termination request and compensation can be complex.

Agree what result you seek, what assistance costs and who monitors the proceedings and any withdrawal period. Following timely withdrawal under Article 7:686a(6)–(7), the court decides only the procedural costs of that withdrawn dissolution petition. Any independent dissolution petition brought by the employer needs separate assessment; withdrawing yours does not automatically remove every other request. Agree in advance whether you will maintain or withdraw your own petition if an unfavourable compensation decision is announced, and who will take that step. Assess any employer offer separately for full release, wages, illness and other claims. These source-based rules do not establish that your employer meets the demanding legal threshold.

Fictional example: repeated exclusion after complaints

An employee says that after a complaint they were repeatedly excluded from meetings and planning. One missed invitation could be a mistake, so they collect the sequence, requests for repair and responses and describe the work impact. An adviser assesses both the whole picture and why termination would be necessary because of it. The employee does not first send unconditional resignation. Compensation remains uncertain: the employer may have an explanation, recovery may be possible or evidence insufficient. Examining cumulative conduct does not replace the substantive legal test.

Contract and any early notice clause.

Timeline of specific events and people.

Complaints, repair requests and full responses.

Link between alleged conduct and necessary departure.

Health, safety and interim income questions.

Desired requests, cost agreement and procedural responsibility.

Is every employer mistake seriously culpable?

No. This is a high threshold requiring all circumstances. Mistakes, conflict or disappointment do not automatically establish equitable compensation.

Must the judge assess each event separately?

Their connection must also be examined, as the Supreme Court emphasised. A series still needs substantive support; merely adding incidents does not prove the threshold.

Can I resign first and arrange compensation afterwards?

That can create substantial income and entitlement risks. Resignation differs from a dissolution petition. Assess the route before an unconditional declaration.

Does my own dissolution request always give transition pay?

No. Employee initiative has separate statutory conditions. Assess contract type, cause of departure and possible equitable compensation separately too.

Sources and editorial notes
Sources current as of: October 23, 2026
1. Dutch Civil Code 7:671c — employee-requested dissolution
Publisher: Wettenbank · Overheid.nl
https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0005290/#Boek7_Titeldeel10_Afdeling9_Artikel671c
2. Dutch Supreme Court — ECLI:NL:HR:2022:63
Publisher: Rechtspraak
https://uitspraken.rechtspraak.nl/details?id=ECLI:NL:HR:2022:63
3. Dutch judiciary — employee petition proceedings
Publisher: Rechtspraak
https://www.rechtspraak.nl/onderwerpen/ontslag/verzoekschriftprocedure-werknemer
4. Dutch Civil Code 7:686a(6)–(7) — notice of intended dissolution and withdrawal
Publisher: Wettenbank · Overheid.nl
https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0005290/#Boek7_Titeldeel10_Afdeling9_Artikel686a
The source publications are in Dutch. All language editions cover Dutch law.