Employee participation 2.0

A group photo on Instagram, a photo of an employee at a company party, a video manipulated using AI: Such situations are commonplace today, and the legal issues they raise are anything but trivial. Every person has the right to determine what happens to their image, whether it be a photograph, video or digital representation. This so-called right to one’s own image is not a matter of course, but a legally protected asset that is firmly enshrined in Swiss personality rights. Anyone who uses, exploits or disseminates another person’s image without their consent is, in principle, acting unlawfully. The Swiss legal system offers a multi-layered protection system through Art. 28 of the Swiss Civil Code (CC), Art. 179quater of the Swiss Criminal Code (SCC) and the revised Data Protection Act, although the limits of this system are tested daily in the digital sphere.

As digitalization advances, people today leave behind not only traditional assets but also a wealth of digital content and traces on the internet, in IT systems, and on storage media. Digital estates are not limited to personal data but encompass a wide range of digital assets and accounts. Since settling a digital estate in the event of inheritance often involves legal and practical challenges, it is advisable to establish appropriate ar-rangements and take precautionary measures during one’s lifetime.

Trademarks have become indispensable in everyday business: they are signs used to distinguish the goods or services of one company from those of others (Art. 1 para. 1 TmPA). Trademarks thus serve both a function of indicating origin and distinguishing products. However, anyone seeking to register a trademark will not obtain protection in every case. The law provides for so-called grounds for refusal, which prevent certain signs from being protected as trademarks at all.