Belgian law (under the Act of 27 July 1961) provides that an exclusive or quasi-exclusive distributor must be compensated if terminated without cause. In practice this means that a terminated Belgian distributor who has actual or arguably de facto exclusivity for a territorial area within Belgium, and will usually seek and often receive damages, even if that distributor has proved a poor performer or even dishonest. Most companies that have encountered the statute tend to respond by appointing entities based in France, Luxembourg, or the Netherlands as distributors for a territory including parts of Belgium, and unfortunately, this may be the wisest course of action. See Distributor, Agency Directive.