Criminal Law
Criminal defense, criminal charges
We advise and represent accused persons, the private claimants, victims and injured persons in the police preliminary investigation, in the investigation procedure with the public prosecutor’s office, in the coercive measures procedure (investigation and security custody) as well as in the first instance main proceedings or in the appeal proceedings. In addition, we advise and represent persons in the administrative proceedings before the administrative authorities (e.g. in road traffic offenses). Our core competences are:
- Advice and representation of private individuals in the area of general criminal law, business criminal law and road traffic law
- Editing of criminal complaints and applications as well as enforcement of damages and satisfaction claims
- Advice and representation of companies in the area of general criminal law, business criminal law and corporate criminal law
Your Experts
Michael Kummer
Senior Partner
Sheila Stach
Junior Associate
Sven Pschorn
Junior Associate
Reto Kuoni
Junior Associate
Faris Beganovic
Junior Associate
Filip Lapadatovic
Junior Associate
Focus
When the debtor reshuffles the deck – undue preference to creditors
Shortly before a company collapses, its finances are reviewed one last time and funds are distributed. It is not uncommon for the remaining funds to be channelled not equally amongst all those who stand to benefit, but rather in a targeted manner – for example, to favoured suppliers, to the bank for which the managing director has provided a personal guarantee, or to a related company. The remaining creditors are often left with a certificate of loss. Swiss law addresses this behaviour on two levels simultaneously: under criminal law through the offence of undue preference to creditors in Article 167 of the Swiss Criminal Code (SCC), and under enforcement law through the avoidance action under Article 285 et seq. of the Swiss Debt Enforcement and Bankruptcy Act (DEBA), known as the ‘Pauliana’. The following article focuses on the criminal law aspect.
Deepfakes and the right to one’s own image: How you can protect yourself
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.
Speeding offences: an overview of classification and legal consequences
Speeding offences are among the most common traffic violations in Switzerland. Even minor speeding infringements may result in financial penalties, while more serious violations can lead to criminal sanctions and the revocation of the driving licence.
This article provides an overview of the legal classification, the sanctioning system, and the relevant threshold values.
