Suchergebnisse für droits patrimoniaux

Actions de loyauté : une fausse bonne idée

Over its summer session 2018, the Swiss National Council adopted the possibility for companies limited by shares (sociétés anonymes/Aktiengesellschaften) to include in their articles of association certain financial privileges to the benefit of shareholders registered for at least two consecutive years in the share register (loyalty shares). This article presents the legislative work in progress…

Identification des actionnaires, restrictions de transfert et « white listings »

Identification of shareholders is a topic that is governed by various layers of rules under Swiss law, which were adopted at different times to serve different purposes. Most of these rules were adopted at a time when the structure of capital markets was very different from what it is today, and before the digitalization of securities became a topic. Also, growing focus on the fight against money…

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…

Les nouveaux droits des actionnaires en matière de restitution et d’accès à l’information

The 19 June 2020 revision of the provisions on the limited by shares company seeks to enhance corporate governance with further transparency and additional shareholder protection. The return of undue benefits claim (art. 678 para. 1 nCO) has been modified to offer Swiss companies and their shareholders a better possibility to obtain redress. This revision also addresses the shareholders’ need to…

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…

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.

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’…

Les avantages (statutaires) particuliers de l’art. 628 al. 3 CO : ­une alternative méconnue aux conventions d’actionnaires

Swiss Company Law provides for a «one size fits all» form of limited by shares companies. The underlying idea is that the articles of association can be customized in order to fit the needs of each particular case. On the other hand however flexibility is limited, in particular due to the fact that besides payment of an emission price for their shares, the articles of association cannot put any…

Réflexions critiques sur l’adoption par la Suisse des normes du GAFI en ­matière de transparence des sociétés : du bricolage législatif à l’abolition des actions au porteur ?

As a result of the revised FATF recommendations issued in 2012, Switzerland, under international pressure, had no choice but to enact requirements aiming at creating more transparency with regard to the ownership and control of limited by share companies. In this context, the widespread possibility for Swiss companies to issue bearer shares was particularly at stake. Switzerland inserted these…

Streaming et linking : la neutralité technologique du droit d’auteur est-elle assurée ?

According to the author of this article, the « technological neutrality » of authors’ rights derives from the principle of equality enshrined in Article 8(1) of the Federal Constitution. Existing legislation is sufficient to secure such neutrality in terms of streaming and hyperlinks. But Swiss courts should refrain from blindly following the case law of the European Court of Justice in…