Legal Notice, Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy
Website publisher, general terms and conditions of service, privacy policy (GDPR) and artificial intelligence usage policy of the firm.
Firm identification
- Registered name
- ÉTUDE VELLA SARL
- Registered office
- 63 Rue du Fossé, L-4123 Esch-sur-Alzette, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
- Trade and Companies Register
- Luxembourg B225399
- Represented by
- Maître Franca Vella, Attorney-at-Law, managing partner
- Bar
- Registered with the Luxembourg Bar
- Telephone
- (+352) 26 17 54 20
- franca.vella@etudevella.lu
Website hosting: to be completed by the technical service provider (host's name, address). This information is mandatory in a legal notice and must not be left blank before the site goes live.
General Terms & Conditions
These general terms and conditions govern the contractual relationship between ÉTUDE VELLA SARL and its clients. In keeping with how they were originally drafted, they are reproduced here in English — contact the firm with any questions or to request a translated version.
Instructions
These are the General Terms and Conditions (the “Terms and Conditions”) on the basis of which ETUDE VELLA SARL, established in Esch-sur-Alzette (Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg), 63 rue du Fossé L-4123 Esch-sur-Alzette, under Register Luxembourg Trade B225399, represented by its managing partner Me VELLA Franca (“I”, “me”), accepts instructions and conducts business with you (“you”, the “client”). By instructing me, you agree to be bound by the Terms and Conditions, which apply to any instructions given to us — including subsequent, amended or additional instructions — and to any actionable relationship arising from their implementation. Instructions are implemented exclusively for the benefit of the client who requests them.
Communications
Instructions are to be delivered in writing, by letter, fax or e-mail. I may act on oral instructions without being obliged to do so. You expressly accept the risks relating to the communication of instructions by fax, e-mail or orally, particularly regarding errors, omissions or delays. E-mail transmission cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error-free; I accept no liability for errors or omissions arising from such transmission. If verification is required, you agree to request a hard copy version.
Time frame
I may, for your guidance, indicate an approximate time frame for implementing your instructions. Unless otherwise agreed in writing, this time frame is a non-binding indication and will not constitute a formal deadline.
Lawyer's fees and expenses
Unless otherwise agreed in writing, fees are based on time worked, multiplied by the applicable rates. An additional charge may apply if the work is particularly complex or the outcome particularly satisfactory. Disbursements incurred on the client’s behalf (translation, bailiff, travel, documentation, registration, notarial fees, taxes, etc.) are charged separately at actual cost. General office costs are charged at a flat rate of 8.50% of fees, subject to change. Time spent reviewing documents or on preliminary research needed to prepare a fee estimate may also be charged at the quoted hourly rate.
Value Added Tax
Fees and expenses covering general office costs may be subject to Luxembourg VAT at the applicable rate if the recipient of the invoice is based within the EU and does not provide an EU VAT identification number prior to receiving the statement of fees.
Fee estimates
Fee estimates are provided on a best-guess basis and do not constitute a minimum or a cap on professional fees; you are charged for time actually spent, whether below or above the estimate. Estimates assume prompt provision of complete, legible documents in English, French or German, and prompt execution and return of powers of attorney, declarations, resolutions and agreements. Estimates do not include VAT or expenses.
Payments of fees
Statements of fees and expenses are payable within fifteen (15) days. Payments made within seven (7) days qualify for a discount (2.50% by default); late payments bear late interest (12.00% per year by default), unless other rates are notified with the fee estimate. An advance payment may be requested at any time, and implementation of instructions may be suspended if it is not provided. Fees and expenses are assumed payable by the client unless notified otherwise, with full particulars of the actual payer including its VAT number.
Limitation of liability
All liability arising out of or in connection with the engagement or services is limited to the amount paid out, if any, under the professional liability insurance policy for the matter concerned. Where no amount is paid out under that policy, liability is limited to five times the total fees charged for the relevant matter, up to a maximum of EUR 125,000.00. This limitation does not apply to loss or damage resulting from deliberately reckless or intentional misconduct.
Third parties
Due care is exercised when engaging a third party, and the client is consulted on the selection of a third party where customary and reasonable — other than for notaries, translators or bailiffs. No liability is accepted for acts or omissions of third parties; the client authorises the cabinet to accept any limitation of liability offered by third parties on its behalf.
Fight against money laundering
Luxembourg anti-money laundering legislation imposes strict client identification obligations. The client commits to promptly provide accurate identification documents, Client Identification Confirmation Forms and Declaration(s) of Beneficial Ownership, and to report any change of circumstances. Instructions may be suspended until all requested documents are received in satisfactory form. The cabinet is compelled by law to report suspicious transactions to the Luxembourg public prosecutor; this legal duty overrides professional confidentiality, and no liability is accepted for loss arising from such disclosure.
Data protection
ETUDE VELLA SARL acts as data controller within the meaning of the GDPR in respect of personal data provided in the context of client instructions, processed to perform the services requested, comply with legal obligations (including anti-money laundering), pursue legitimate interests, and, where applicable, on the basis of consent. Data is kept for the duration of the relationship and thereafter as required by law. Clients have the rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction, objection and portability, and may lodge a complaint with the CNPD. See the full Privacy Policy below.
Use of artificial intelligence tools
The cabinet may use AI systems, including generative AI tools, to assist with legal research, document review, translation, drafting or summarising — always subject to personal review and professional judgment by Maître Franca Vella, who remains fully responsible for the advice given. Reasonable steps are taken to ensure any AI processing complies with professional confidentiality obligations and the GDPR; no AI tool reusing confidential or personal data to train third-party-accessible models is knowingly used without prior written consent. Where an AI system interacts directly with a visitor, this is disclosed in accordance with Article 50 of the AI Act. See the full Artificial Intelligence Usage Policy below.
Governing law and jurisdiction
The relationship is governed exclusively by Luxembourg law, with exclusive jurisdiction given to the courts of Luxembourg-City. No claim may be made unless litigation is commenced within one year of discovery. As claimant, the cabinet retains the option of submitting a dispute to any court that would have jurisdiction in the absence of this provision.
Privacy Policy
Protection of personal data, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR).
1. Who is responsible for your data
Maître Franca Vella, Attorney-at-Law, Étude Vella — 63 Rue du Fossé, L-4123 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg — (+352) 26 17 54 20 — franca.vella@etudevella.lu. As the firm is run by a single lawyer, Maître Franca Vella is the sole point of contact for any question relating to your personal data.
2. Data collected and why
Contact form (name, contact details, subject of the request) to respond to you and arrange an appointment; client file (identity documents, documents required to handle your matter) for the performance of the engagement. Browsing the site: to date, the site does not install any cookies or audience-measurement trackers — this section will be updated if such a tool is added.
3. Legal basis
Performance of the engagement or response to your contact request; legal obligations of the legal profession (client identification, accounting obligations, anti-money laundering — Law of 12 November 2004); the firm's legitimate interest in managing its client relationships and the security of the site.
4. Who receives your data
To Maître Franca Vella exclusively, for the handling of your file, and, on occasion, to professional correspondents (notaries, bailiffs, translators) where necessary for the performance of the engagement. The firm may occasionally use a generative artificial intelligence tool to assist with drafting and legal research; no data allowing the identification of a client or a third party to a file is communicated to that tool (see the Artificial Intelligence Usage Policy below). Your data may also be communicated to public or judicial authorities, only where required by law.
5. Transfers outside the European Union
To be completed by the site's technical service provider: if the host or another provider transfers data outside the European Union, the mechanism used (standard contractual clauses, Data Privacy Framework certification) must be specified here before the site goes live.
6. Retention period
Contact request with no follow-up: 3 years. Client file: for the duration of the engagement, plus the applicable limitation periods and, where AML-CFT legislation applies, 5 years after the end of the business relationship.
7. Your rights
You have the right of access, rectification, erasure, restriction, objection and portability with respect to your data, as well as the right to withdraw your consent at any time where consent is the basis for processing. These rights may be exercised with Maître Franca Vella at franca.vella@etudevella.lu, and may be limited by attorney professional secrecy or a legal retention obligation. You may also lodge a complaint with the Commission Nationale pour la Protection des Données (CNPD) — 15, Boulevard du Jazz, L-4370 Belvaux — www.cnpd.lu.
8. Cookies
To date, the site does not use any non-essential cookies. This section will be updated if an audience-measurement tool or any other tracker is installed, with details of each cookie (name, publisher, purpose, duration) and, where applicable, a consent banner.
Last updated: September 2026
Artificial Intelligence Usage Policy
Compliance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (the ‘AI Act’).
1. Purpose
The firm uses a generative artificial intelligence tool to assist with legal research and the drafting of document projects. This policy sets out the rules ensuring that this use remains compliant with attorney professional secrecy, professional ethics and Regulation (EU) 2024/1689. The tool used is selected for its contractual confidentiality guarantees: no use of exchanges to train third-party models, and a data processing agreement compliant with Article 28 of the GDPR where personal data is involved.
2. Rules of use
No content produced with the help of AI is sent to a client, a court or a third party without personal review and validation by Maître Franca Vella — AI is a support tool, it never replaces the lawyer's analysis. No data covered by professional secrecy (client identity, case documents, litigation strategy) is communicated to the tool without prior anonymisation. Any legal or case-law information produced by the AI is verified against primary sources before any use.
3. Information for clients
In the interest of transparency, the firm applies the following clause: ‘The client is informed and agrees that Étude Vella may use, as a support tool and under the systematic supervision of Maître Franca Vella, artificial intelligence solutions in the context of legal research and the preparation of document projects, in strict compliance with professional secrecy. The content of any service provided to the client remains, in all cases, finalised and personally validated by Maître Franca Vella.’
4. Use of AI on this website
The website does not currently incorporate any chatbot or artificial intelligence system that interacts automatically with visitors. This section will be updated if such a feature is added, in accordance with Article 50 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689.
Last updated: September 2026