Suchergebnisse für administrative procedure

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

The New EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation and its Implications for Switzerland

The EU has adopted a new unilateral instrument to control subsidies granted by non-EU countries, such as Switzerland, to companies operating in the EU. This subsidy control combines antitrust, state aid and trade rules, but applies directly to companies rather than to foreign states or granting authorities. Companies with some activities in the EU fall within the scope of this foreign subsidy…

Les enjeux de la CSRD pour les entreprises suisses

The CSRD, which substantially expands the scope of companies forced to publish sustainability-related data, has a direct and indirect extraterritorial effect on Swiss companies. Size is not the only relevant criterion. Engaging with the EU market or with European companies can have (unexpected) implications. This worldwide impact is coupled with comprehensive and granular disclosures covering a…

The Normative Effects of ESG Expectations on Companies and their Directors

Most companies face a growing number of environmental, social and governance (ESG) expectations arising not only from their shareholders, but also from a wide array of stakeholders such as clients, investors, States, financial institutions and not-for-profit organisations. Even though a significant number of these expectations are not imposed by hard or soft law, they cannot be disregarded in…

Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2022/2023 | Le droit des sociétés 2022/2023

Im berücksichtigten Zeitraum vom 1. April 2022 bis zum 31. März 2023 wurden wenige Urteile gefällt und nur ein Bruchteil davon wurden veröffentlicht bzw. zur Veröffentlichung vorgesehen. Trotzdem…

The Materiality of Sustainability Information under Capital Markets Law

This paper explores the legal concept of the materiality of sustainability-related information under Swiss capital markets law. References to international standards, as well as EU and U.S. provisions, are also made with a view to highlighting the increasing importance of environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspects in the law and regulation of capital markets. We primarily focus on the…

Innovation in Pharmaceutical Mergers: Looking for a Miracle Cure?

The European Commission’s approach to analysing the negative effects of a merger on competition has recently changed. Whereas for years, competition authorities have mainly focused on the effects of a merger on prices, the impact on output, or the creation or strengthening of a dominant position in a given market, they are now examining the effects of a merger on innovation. The analysis of the…

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

Missmanagement im Bankensektor und die FINMA-Gewährsprüfung

This article addresses the following questions: Can the fitness and propriety audit of bank managers deliver what it promises? How could the fitness and propriety audit be improved within the framework of the existing legal basis or, if necessary, by means of new or adapted regulations? The tension between FINMA’s supervisory procedure on the one hand and criminal proceedings on the other hand…

Neuerungen und offene Fragen der revidierten Geldwäschereivorschriften im Bereich des Nachmeldeverhaltens von Finanzintermediären

The current revision of the anti-money laundering provisions introduces changes in the area referred to as subsequent reporting that have not undergone much examination thus far. However, these changes also have significant implications for financial intermediaries: With the removal of the time limit for analysis, the maximum time limit for executing client orders following a suspicious activity…

Le droit des sociétés 2021/2022 / Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2021/2022

Cette année, le Tribunal fédéral a eu l’occasion de se prononcer sur des questions dont on peut s’étonner qu’elles se posent pour la première fois à lui, compte tenu des discussions qu’elles ont…

Sanctions Américaines: Extraterritorialité et Risques Bancaires

A Swiss bank operating in the US must comply with applicable US laws. Difficulties may arise from the „off-shore“ application of US sanctions. The US sanctions regime is well known¹, especially through the publications of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)² and through the calls for caution issued by the banking supervisory authority³. This contribution provides an update on the…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2021 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2021

Au moment où nous écrivons ces lignes, la Russie envahit l’Ukraine. L’Union européenne et les États-Unis ont adopté de nouvelles sanctions contre plusieurs centaines de personnalités liées au régime…

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

Grenzen der Mitwirkungspflicht von Banken im Verfahren der internationalen Steueramtshilfe

The appetite of foreign authorities for tax data is steadily growing. The requests for administrative assistance related to bank clients are no longer limited to the usual account documents. Rather, a trend became apparent that the requesting states require the banks to specially process such data. Against this background, it is important to determine the limits of duty of banks and other…

Le compliance officer face au risque pénal découlant du dispositif anti-blanchiment

In the financial sector, the function of compliance officer is closely linked to the fight against money laun­dering, which is one of the main risks for the Swiss financial centre. The profession has important responsibilities in this field and breaches of its obligations can lead to (administrative) criminal sanctions, in particular for money laundering or violation of the duty to report a…

Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2020 | Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2020

Das Jahr 2020 war in vielerlei Hinsicht aussergewöhnlich. Demgegenüber bewegen sich die Entscheide zum privaten Bankrecht, die in diesem Jahr gefällt wurden, zu einem Grossteil im Rahmen des…

Annonce des violations de la sécurité des données: une nouvelle obligation de la nLPD

The data security principle (art. 8 of the revised Federal Act on Data Protection (rFADP) requires that the controller and when applicable the processor take all the necessary measures to maintain a sufficient level of security when processing personal data, including to prevent any data breach. Nevertheless, data breaches can occur and when so, the controller shall react quickly in order to…

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

1. In economic theory, transparency of information is usually seen as a positive condition, which contributes to effective competition. When one turns to competition law, however, it seems that…

Schutz von Bankmitarbeiterdaten in Amtshilfeverfahren

In a landmark decision at the end of 2017, the Federal Supreme Court stated that in administrative assistance documents the names of bank employees must always be redacted. In July 2020, it took two further landmark decisions on the legal position of bank employees and other third parties in administrative assistance proceedings. Firstly, it concluded that, in general, an intended data transfer…

Trois modèles de contrôle des investissements transfrontaliers

The screening of foreign investment has become a growing concern for many countries. In the midst of a trade war between the US and China as well as issues related to state-owned companies’ interference in the EU, it is bound to become a subject of heated debates in Switzerland. As we continue to live through a global pandemic, some countries are seeing themselves lacking or at least vulnerable…

Le droit des sociétés 2019/2020 / Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2019/2020

La décision judiciaire la plus importante de l’année écoulée concerne le droit des groupes de sociétés, à savoir le Cash Pooling, mais cette fois dans le contexte de la responsabilité du conseil d’administration (1.). Un autre arrêt important clarifie l’exercice de la clause échappatoire pour le refus au transfert des actions nominatives liées (2.). La jurisprudence a en outre eu l…

Editorial

Banking and financial markets and services are the common topic of all but one of the papers published in this Spring issue of the Swiss Review of Business and Financial Market Law. Once again, we…

Mise sous scellés et infractions financières: développements récents

The sealing of evidence is a procedural tool of great relevance, notably in the context of economic offences. The case law on this measure is important and sometimes uncertain. This is especially true in administrative criminal law: the practical importance of this area of law has been steadily increasing these past years while its procedural provisions appear to be outdated. This paper deals…

LEFin-LSFin: des assujettis face aux nouveaux organes et organismes

The regulations governing financial institutions and services are bringing new actors – such as portfolio managers and trustees – within the scope of FINMA su­pervision, supported by a reformed self-regulatory framework. It is worth comparing the latter with the set of rules and organizational measures adopted for the registration of client advisors and the control of prospectuses for securities…

La fin des rapports de travail du banquier : concurrence et bonus

The end of the banker’s working relationship is sometimes conflicting. The sticking points generally concern non-competition clauses and the payment of bonuses. The purpose of this article is to set out the rules applicable in this area in a way that both presents the legal principles and promotes practical solutions. In particular, the possibility of imposing a non-competition clause on the…

Pièges fiscaux du contrat de prêt

This contribution deals with the tax « traps » of the loan agreement. Loans are usually quite simple from a tax standpoint since they are neutral. Yet, the author examines three specific instances where things do not turn out so well. The first of which is the cancellation of ­indebtedness, which may result in taxable income ­(Article 16 par. 1 or Article 18 par. 1 Direct Federal Tax Law)…

Les données bancaires pseudonymisées – Du secret bancaire à la protection des données

Law strictly restricts the transfer of personal data and data protected by banking secrecy, especially outside of Switzerland. Personal data is defined as all information relating to an identified or identifiable person. Similarly, legal scholarship and case law hold that banking secrecy protects only client identifying data. The ability to identify the relevant person is thus core to both data…

Les frais de procédure et d’investigation sous pression

There has been a sharp increase in appeals relating to FINMA’s investigation and litigation costs. This article takes up recent case law and examines in detail all the legal questions that have been submitted to the federal judges over the past twelve months. The current FINMA’s practice of charging procedural costs to individuals and legal entities irrespective of whether or not they are subject…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2019 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2019

Cette chronique s’allonge chaque année. Sa consultation en devient moins aisée. Pour faciliter son accès aux lecteurs nous avons introduit trois nouveautés.

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

Obviously, steps taken by certain companies in the media sector trigger reactions from competitors in this dynamic environment which is constantly changing as a result of the digital revolution. Interestingly, Comco faced at the same time two transactions (AZ Medien/NZZ and Tamedia/Basler Zeitung) which had to be assessed in light of each other from the perspective of collective dominance:⁹⁰

L’émission d’actions digitalisées comme moyen de financement de l’innovation et des PME

Switzerland is a world-leading nation in terms of entrepreneurship and promotion of innovation. Its universities produce a high number of start-ups. Its economy is based on a web of small and medium-sized companies, which make for the bulk of the country’s economic activity. Paradoxically though, the Swiss capital markets are relatively inefficient in channeling savings to companies. Only a…

Le droit à l’information de l’administrateur et sa mise en œuvre judiciaire

This article deals with the right to information and ­inspection of a member of the board of directors (Article 715a of the Swiss Code of Obligations, CO) and the possibility, recently acknowledged by the Federal Tribunal, to raise a claim based on such right. The implementing of Article 715a CO in court gives rise to a number of questions. Often, time is of the essence and a court decision may…

Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2018/2019 / Le droit des sociétés 2018/2019

Im vergangenen Jahr stechen wiederum die Verantwortlichkeitsklagen gegen geschäftsführende Organe hervor (1.). Die weiteren Fälle betreffen die Akkreditierung von Revisoren (2.) sowie die Rechtsprechung zur Vertretung der Gesellschaft bei Interessenkonflikten (3.) und die gemischte Anwalts-AG (4.).

Editorial

Banking and financial markets and services are the common topic of this issue of the Swiss Review of ­Business and Financial Market Law. What once was a fairly specialized but consistent area of the…

FINMA’s Enforcement in Court

This article presents an empirical and qualitative analy­sis of the judicial review of the Swiss Financial Markets Supervisory Authority’s (FINMA) enforcement of financial market laws by the Federal Administrative Court and the Federal Supreme Court. It is part of a broader research project on global enforcement against financial institutions and their managers and employees. Based on an overview…

Enquêtes internes et secret professionnel de l’avocat

The Federal Court recently rendered two decisions on the issue of the protection of the lawyer’s professional secrecy within the context of internal inquiries. These decisions represent an important step, since there were contradictory opinions in legal writings on the issue of whether lawyers’ participation in internal inquiries should be regarded as a typical activity, and consequently covered…

L’[in]effectivité du secret professionnel – Peut-on protéger le produit du travail du service juridique dans les procédures?

The protection of the legal department’s work product is closely linked to the professional privilege of in-house counsels. Such a privilege exists in the United States and many European countries but is non-existent, respectively non-effective in Switzerland. After the abandonment in 2010 of a new federal law aimed at regulating the in-house counsels status and inter alia granting them such a…

Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2018 / Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2018

Das Jahr 2018 brachte einen reichen Fundus an Entscheiden im privaten Bankrecht. Etliche davon schreiben Geschichten fort, über die wir bereits in früheren Übersichten berichtet hatten. Dazu gehört die Klage des Drogeriekönigs Müller gegen die Bank J. Safra ­Sarasin im Zusammenhang mit den sogenannten Cum-­Ex-Geschäften (r34), die Fortsetzung der Verantwortlichkeitsklage der Glarner…

Seuils d’intervention ou examen ex post pour le contrôle des concentrations dans les marchés digitalisés?

Digital markets are open in principle. But network effects may rapidly favour the first successful entrant and establish high entry barriers for followers. In addition, the exchanges are often valued in data access rather than in traditional money terms. These characteristics challenge our merger control regimes. Mandatory notification systems are particularly vulnerable since merger projects in…

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

Over the past few months the Courts issued quite a significant number of judgments. Generally, they favoured a strict competition policy in dealing with substantive law issues. However, this was not done to the detriment of the protection of the parties’ procedural rights...

Validité et efficacité de la clause shotgun en droit suisse

A shotgun clause establishes a mechanism intended to resolve deadlocks in companies with two shareholders with equal stakes. It enables one of the two shareholders to trigger a procedure which will ultimately result in the purchase of all the shares at a fair price. The offeror initiates the procedure by proposing a certain price for the shares. The offeree then decides whether to sell its shares…

Le droit des sociétés 2017/2018 / Das Gesellschaftsrecht 2017/2018

Au cours de l’année écoulée, en plus du point final porté à l’affaire Sika (1.), un certain nombre de décisions se sont distinguées. Le Tribunal fédéral est revenu sur l’exorbitance des conventions d…

Editorial

Au moment où nous écrivons cet éditorial, la Commission des affaires juridiques du Conseil des Etats vient d’approuver à son tour une initiative parlementaire proposant d’introduire le trust dans le…

Propositions pour un trust suisse

New voices, including in Parliament, are now calling for the adoption of the trust as an institution of Swiss law. This would provide Swiss residents with a much-needed vehicle for estate planning and structuring. It would also improve the legal certainty and robustness of very common business transactions. Notably it would allow lawyers, notaries and other professionals to protect their clients’…

Blanchiment d’argent: la banque face au risque pénal

This paper focuses on the main issues regarding the criminal liability of a bank for money laundering from a practical perspective. Substantive law as well as procedural aspects are considered. After an update on the practice of the criminal justice authorities, we examine the circle of agents able to trigger the liability of the ­corporation, notably in situations of outsourcing. Then,…

Vollgeld-Initiative und Alternativkonzepte

A full-reserve banking system as requested by a Swiss popular initiative would not bring the promised benefits. Accepting the initiative would entail unforeseeable risks for the Swiss economy. To prevent these risks, vol­untary full-reserve accounts have been suggested to complement the existing fractional reserve system. This article discusses possible concepts for such vol­untary full-reserve…

Le droit bancaire privé suisse 2017 / Das schweizerische Bankprivatrecht 2017

Les services d’investissement (intermédiation sur le marché des capitaux et le marché monétaire) ont une telle importance dans le débat sur la place financière suisse qu’on oublie souvent de rappeler…

Le régime de responsabilité civile en matière d’émissions publiques de jetons digitaux (ICO)

Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) consist of an innovative form of capital raising. In the digital era, it has become technically possible to raise substantial funds within a very short period of time. This paper analyses the civil liability regime applying to misrepresentations communicated to investors acquiring tokens in an ICO. Pursuant to the prospectus liability provisions of the Swiss Code of…

Recent developments in Swiss competition law

1. The above title might raise a few eyebrows. What is the relationship between the Coty case, which was decided at the end of 2017 by the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”),¹ and the Gaba² and BMW³ judgments handed down the same year by the Federal Tribunal? In addition to the fact that these three cases deal with vertical agreements, the first interesting point of comparison is that the ECJ…