Swiss Law Firm with a Primary Focus in Business Law

Wenger & Vieli

Dufourstrasse 56
Lockbox 1285
Zurich CH-8034
Switzerland

+41 58 958 58 58

+41 58 958 59 59

www.wengervieli.ch/?lang=en-US

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Law Firm Overview

Wenger & Vieli is a Swiss law firm with office locations in Zurich and Zug. For over forty years, the firm has dedicated itself to serving its clients, primarily in the area of business law. Clients appreciate the firm’s strong roots in the Zurich region as well as its international focus. Wenger & Vieli distinguish themselves from other law firms through their personal counseling in small teams. This enables them to respond quickly to client needs on an individual basis. In so doing, the quality of work is always at the forefront. The firm advises clients on a timely basis, in the form desired and at reasonable expense.

The firm provides legal services to large international and multinational companies in respect of domestic, international and cross-border activities. Through a worldwide network of foreign correspondents it is experienced to work on multi-jurisdiction transactions as part of teams with firms in other countries.

The firm advises a wide spectrum of clients, ranging from large companies to private individuals seeking advice in business and private matters. The firm’s clients include multinational consumer product corporations, industrial multinational enterprises and financial institutions with activities within Switzerland as well as cross-border.

Year this Office was Established: 1971

Languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Czech and Russian.

Practice Areas

Additional Practice Areas: Collective Investment Schemes; Notarial Services; Payments, Clearing and Settlement.

Practice Areas Description

Our practice areas include:

- Corporate & Commercial

The firm advises on the establishment of companies in Switzerland, joint ventures, shareholders’ agreements, negotiation and drafting of contracts such as international sales, distribution, licensing and other commercial contracts, business succession planning including estate planning and wills, and employment law including work and residence permits, and, M&A.

- Restructuring

The firm handles merger and acquisition transactions, management buyouts, leveraged buyouts and is experienced in the area of corporate restructuring.

- Banking, Financial Services, Securities & Capital Markets

The firm has acquired extensive experience in all aspect of banking and financial services, including compliance and regulatory work, capital market transactions, IPOs, venture capital, debt financing, stock exchange law and securities law.

- Acquisition and Project Financing

We advise banks and borrowers in legal and tax matters in connection with:

. the drafting and negotiation of financing concepts (term sheets);
. the negotiation and drafting of loan documentations;
. the validation, preparation and implementation of collateralization concepts;
. the drafting of the security documentation and of
. intercreditor agreements (intercreditor deeds).

- Collective Investment Schemes

Wenger & Vieli advises its clients on the structuring, establishment and distribution of investment funds, both in the form of collective investment schemes under Swiss law and as offshore structures.

- Employment Law

We advise companies and private individuals on all areas of employment law. This comprises the drafting of various employment contracts, including contracts for executives, and the development of regulations, operating manuals, employee remuneration models, employee share programs and (post-contractual) non-compete covenants. The activities of Wenger & Vieli include advice on business restructurings (personnel reductions, mass redundancies), individual dismissals and mandatory leave as well as advice on severance agreements. We further support our clients in connection with the secondment of employees and the procurement of work and residence permits for foreign employees in Switzerland.

- Information Technology

Wenger & Vieli advises and represents clients on all issues relating to information technology (IT) law as well as neighboring areas of law.

- Inheritance Law

Our firm offers comprehensive advice on inheritance law issues. This includes estate planning as well as succession planning, including trust law and foundation law. Wenger & Vieli also assumes functions as foundation council members, trustees, protectors, etc., and represents its clients in complex inheritance law litigation.

- Media Law

We represent publishing companies and individuals in all areas of media and press law as well as in numerous areas of the music and entertainment industry. Our activities include, on the one hand, advice on contract law matters as well as in connection with M&A transactions, including cartel law and unfair competition law issues, as well as, on the other hand, support in connection with intellectual property law issues and questions relating to personal rights.

- Mergers and Acquisitions

We provide expert legal advice on all aspects of M&A and corporate restructurings. In cross-border transactions, Wenger & Vieli has considerable experience in working with foreign firms. Wenger & Vieli also acts as project manager in complex international transactions.

- Notarial Services

We offer a broad spectrum of notarial services. For example, in terms of companies, we handle formations, capital increases and reductions, mergers and amendments to the articles of association. Our activities also include advising on and authenticating marital and/or inheritance contracts, last wills and testaments and sureties. We regularly advise on real estate transactions. Finally, we certify signatures and copies and also arrange for an apostille or legalization, as needed.

- Payments, Clearing and Settlement

We advise financial institutions, infrastructure organizations and joint utilities on legal issues relating to cashless payments, securities clearing and securities settlement within Switzerland and Europe.

- Real Estate

Wenger & Vieli advises Swiss and international clients on all business and private legal issues related to immovable property and real estate. Our expertise includes all legal aspects of financing, sale and lease-back transactions and commercial leasing. We advise our clients on the appropriate investment structure and support them in connection with the negotiation of real estate purchase agreements and lease agreements. We also provide comprehensive representation in connection with court and arbitration disputes relating to real estate and assist foreigners in procuring a permit to acquire real estate in Switzerland (Lex Koller).

- Litigation & Arbitration

One of the firm’s core competencies is conducting litigation and arbitration in all its practice areas. The firm’s experts provide assistance to clients in defining the litigation strategy and settling disputes, and represent clients or act as arbitrators and chairmen in international arbitrations, including ICC proceedings.

- Competition & Antitrust

The firm has considerable experience in domestic and European competition and antitrust law.

- Pharmaceutical & Life Sciences

The firm advises Swiss and foreign pharmaceutical and biotech companies on questions relating to market authorization, reimbursement, advertising, unfair competition, anti-trust and product liability.

- Intellectual Property

The firm advises clients on the protection, use, exploitation and defense of IP rights. Its activities concentrate on the areas of trademarks, designs and copyright. Further, it handles specific issues in connection with patents and supplementary protection certificates. The firm also has a large wealth of experience in unfair competition law, advertising law, the law governing names, as well as in internet-specific issues.

- Telecommunications & IT

Expertise includes product and services contracts, licence agreements, co-operation agreements and outsourcing projects.

- Insolvency

Wenger & Vieli represents its clients in bankruptcy and debt enforcement proceedings of all types. Our attorneys are experienced in the various stages of insolvency proceedings, including, in particular, bankruptcy and liquidation of banks and other supervised institutions.

- Tax

The firm advises individuals and legal entities on all aspects of Swiss and international tax law. The firm provides the full scale of tax-related services such as structuring of M&A transactions, national and international tax planning, creating value by structuring of group companies etc.

Affiliations

Meritas

Partners

	Mr. Peter Altorfer Partner Arbitration, Banking Law, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Inheritance Law		Mr. Bruno Bächli Partner Tax
	Mr. Marco Cereghetti Partner Arbitration, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Employment, Inheritance Law		Mr. Daniel Girsberger Partner Arbitration, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Litigation
	Mr. Roman Heiz Partner Arbitration, Banking Law, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Employment		Mr. Martin Hess Managing Partner Banking Law, Capital Markets, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Information Technology
	Mr. Michael Huber Partner Arbitration, Banking Law, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Inheritance Law		Mr. Andreas Hünerwadel Partner Arbitration, Banking Law, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Litigation
	Mr. Stephan Hürlimann Partner Inheritance Law, Tax		Mr. Michael Mráz Partner Arbitration, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Litigation
	Ms. Barbara Brauchli Rohrer Partner Mergers and Acquisitions, Project Finance, Tax		Mr. Frank Scherrer Partner Commercial Law, Competition Law, Corporate Law, Employment, Science and Technology
	Mr. Christoph Schmid Partner Arbitration, Capital Markets, Commercial Law, Competition Law, Corporate Law		Ms. Bignia Vieli Partner Arbitration, Banking Law, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Information Technology
	Mr. Urs Weber-Stecher Partner Arbitration, Commercial Law, Competition Law, Corporate Law, Information Technology		Mr. Christian Wenger Partner Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Mergers and Acquisitions, Private Equity, Venture Capital
	Mr. Georg Zondler Partner Arbitration, Banking Law, Commercial Law, Corporate Law, Insolvency

Associates

	Ms. Yvonne Andreoli Associate		Ms. Xenia Athanassoglou Associate
	Mr. Nicolas Bracher Associate		Ms. Regula Grunder Senior Associate
	Ms. Sonia Hausherr Associate		Ms. Simone Hofbauer Senior Associate
	Mr. Pascal Honold Senior Associate		Philipp Lindenmayer Senior Associate
	Mr. Droese Lorenz Senior Associate		Ms. Caroline Müller Associate
	Mr. Patrick Näf Associate		Mr. Oliver Staffelbach Senior Associate
	Mr. Eyal I. Tavor Associate		Mr. Michael Tschudin Associate
	Mr. Marc Walter Associate		Mr. Silvio Wyss Associate
	Ms. Andrea Zbinden Senior Associate