General counsel and company secretary | Lonza Group
Among the general counsel of Switzerland’s top 20 companies by market cap and free float, Andreas Bohrer is likely the one with the broadest portfolio of tasks. He in charge...
General counsel | Baloise Group
Andreas Burki studied the law at the University of Basel and Neuchâtel and passed the bar exam in Switzerland/Canton of Basel-Landschaft in 1993. From 1995 to 1999, he was legal...
General counsel and member of the executive committee and global executive board | Partners Group
Senior legal counsel | Roche
Barbara Schroeder de Castro Lopes possesses decades of diverse legal experience, gained from the Swiss federal government and judiciary and a leading Swiss law firm. For over five years,...
General counsel | Nestlé
Béranger Pène is the general counsel at Nestrade, Nestlé Group’s global procurement arm. Alongside a team of 15 legal professionals based in four locations worldwide – Switzerland, Kuala Lumpur, Panama,...
General counsel, corporate and compliance | gategroup
While working through his entire legal education in law firms, Christian decided to start his career in-house after graduating with his LLM in International IP laws: ‘I would rather have...
General counsel | Mövenpick Holding
Christian is the general counsel of Mövenpick Holding, where he oversees all legal and IP matters within the Group. He is also responsible for M&A transactions, licensing activities, all commercial...
Executive vice president and global general counsel | Fresenius Medical Care
Executive director - lead legal counsel for Europe, Canada and partner markets | Biogen
Vice president, chief counsel intellectual property and EMEA region general counsel | TE Connectivity
Head legal and compliance Asset Management | Helvetia Insurance Group
Group general counsel | Duferco
Federico Piccaluga is the general counsel of Duferco Group, and a qualified lawyer with international in-house experience in cross-border transactions such as joint ventures and M&A. He is a graduate...
Senior vice president and chief counsel | Mondelēz International
EMEA general counsel, EMEA data protection officer | Acer Europe
Vice president – associate general counsel EMEA | Baxter International
General counsel, company secretary and director of strategic development | Coca-Cola HBC
General counsel P&C/L&H Reinsurance | Swiss Re
Having gathered valuable experience with prestigious New York law firms and investment bank UBS, Jennifer Parets joined Swiss Re in 2009 as senior legal counsel to Group Treasury. Two years...
General counsel and member of the executive leadership team | Clariant
Associate general counsel | Moderna
Lisa joined Moderna in 2020 and leads their global technical operations and international legal teams. She joined Moderna at a unique point in time as the company scaled internationally at...
General counsel and company secretary | Citigroup
Marc P. Leuzinger was named general counsel for Citi Switzerland and Liechtenstein in 2018. He is also responsible for Citi’s Legal coverage in Jersey and Monaco. In addition, Marc acts...
Group general counsel and chief legal operations officer | wefox Holding
Group general counsel | Kuehne + Nagel International
Dr. Marc Pfeffer has been a member of the management board responsible for legal and governance at Kuehne+Nagel International since January 2023. Marc joined Kuehne+Nagel as group general counsel in...
General counsel, chief compliance officer EMEA and APAC | PHC Holdings Corporation
Marieke Jansen is the general counsel of PHC Group for the EMEA and APAC region, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange since October 2021, and for Ascensia Diabetes Care globally....
Head of legal and compliance SBB passenger traffic | SBB
Group general counsel | Barry Callebaut Group
Martin Oesch is a seasoned general counsel with over 20 years of professional experience in the legal field, currently serving as group general counsel and corporate secretary of Swiss-listed global...
Group general counsel and chief compliance officer | Geistlich Pharma
Anyone who gets in touch with Martin Wartmann is likely to be impressed by his versatility and drive. To finance his studies both in Switzerland and USA, he worked in...
Global head of legal | Louis Dreyfus Company
Over the course of almost a decade with the Fortune top-200 ranked Louis Dreyfus Company, Massimiliano Talli has risen through the ranks and found success in a number of roles....
General counsel | Holcim
Mathias Gaertner is the general counsel and member of the executive committee of Holcim Group. Alongside his team, he manages Holcim’s legal affairs in over 60 countries globally in all...
Senior vice president legal, general counsel | Molecular Partners
Michael Pitzner is general counsel and compliance officer, senior vice president of legal at Molecular Partners. He joined the company in November 2022. Prior to joining the team, Michael worked...
General counsel, head of legal for regional sales and solutions | Siemens Smart Infrastructure
General counsel and head of legal and compliance for Holcim Central Europe West | Holcim
Chief counsel M&A, senior vice president | ABB
Natascia Rubinic has overseen all major transactions of the ABB Group for more than a decade, recently including the transformational divestiture of the power grids business via the creation of...
Secretary general board affairs and chief governance officer, member of the group executive committee | Audemars Piguet
General counsel | Alpiq
Nicole is currently general counsel of Alpiq, an energy group based in Switzerland and active in the production and trading of energy (in particular, electricity) in Europe. As general counsel,...
Group chief legal and compliance officer and general counsel | Verisure
General counsel and chief of corporate affairs | Salt Mobile
Senior director | Dana Incorporated | Dana Incorporated
General counsel | Compass Group (Schweiz)
Patrick von Arx joined Compass Group (Schweiz) – the Swiss subsidiary of the world’s largest food services company – in 2018, after over 15 years as an attorney. As lead...
Senior vice president, group general counsel and chief compliance officer | SIG Group
Philippe Huber is an accomplished legal and compliance executive with extensive experience and expertise in multi-jurisdictional matters. After spending many years in private practice in Zurich and London, he joined...
Director of legal and policy, general counsel | European Broadcasting Union
General counsel and chief information officer | Rising Tide- Novintum Medical Technology
Executive vice president legal affairs and general counsel | Tetra Pak
Sébastien has been executive vice president for legal affairs and general counsel since January 2022. He was previously general counsel and secretary of the board of directors at Rexel. Prior...
Vice president and associate general counsel, head of legal EMEA | Jet Aviation
Simon Leimbacher is a lawyer qualified in both The US and UK, with extensive experience in the areas of corporate and international law – with particular focus on complex contract...
Group general counsel | SBB CFF FFS
Stephanie Bregy has been group general counsel and head of legal and compliance at SBB, the Swiss Federal Railways, since 2019. Before joining SBB, Bregy spent over eight years at...
On behalf of The Legal 500, I am thrilled to warmly welcome our readers to the annual edition of The Legal 500 GC Powerlist: Switzerland. This year’s Powerlist celebrates the remarkable achievements of the top in-house lawyers in the country and their invaluable contributions to the legal landscape.
In this publication, we delve into the dynamic challenges faced by the in-house legal community in Switzerland, with a particular focus on the ever-evolving realms of innovation, technology and legislation. General counsel and legal leaders have shared their insights, experiences, and strategies in navigating these complex areas. Despite the inherent risks and uncertainties of the current landscape, the esteemed counsel featured in this ongoing edition are committed to ensuring business longevity and the continued vitality of the in-house legal function.
The in-house legal community in Switzerland has adapted their leadership style to prioritise the overall well-being of their team members, especially in light of the new challenges brought by the climate of uncertainty. The adoption of legal tech within in-house teams has been accelerated, leading to the implementation of cutting-edge solutions. As Gianni Porpiglia, general counsel at Bergos, suggests, ‘by leveraging the power of technology, legal teams can provide timely, accurate advice on complex cross-border legal matters while also reducing the legal risk of costly legal mistakes. IT tools that create a workspace for real-time collaboration and communication, as well as tools that can be used as a secure place to store, organise, share and access information helpful as well as document automation and online legal research tools.’
The importance of in-house legal lawyers has seen a remarkable rise in Switzerland. Their significance within their organisations has expanded well beyond traditional advisory roles, encompassing leadership and guidance in various domains. The ongoing crisis, including the pandemic and geopolitical challenges, together with innovation, has further underscored the vital role of the general counsel in steering companies through uncertainty. As Nina Hagmann, chief corporate affairs officer and general counsel and corporate secretary at Salt Mobile, stresses: ‘The translation of legal language and requirements into a language understandable by the business requires a broad set of skills from the legal team beyond traditional legal knowledge. Moving forward and away from a purely formal legal department to a real business partner, project manager, leader and business enabler and continuing to shape this role has been and will continue to be one of the most important challenges’.
Esteemed in-house counsel in the publication have generously shared their advice and insights with junior colleagues, offering guidance on how to thrive in today’s legal environment. They emphasise the importance of developing a solid foundation in core legal skills while also cultivating a deep understanding of the business industry in which they operate. In-house lawyers also stress the importance of continuous learning and personal development. As Jennifer Parets, general counsel of P&C/L&H Reinsurance at Swiss Re states, ‘it starts with breadth and diversity of experience. I have also found that the most successful in-house lawyers possess a range of qualities including curiosity, desire to bring about positive outcomes, interest in the development of talent, and progressive thinking’.
It has been an absolute honour to engage with and showcase the exceptional talent featured in this edition of The Legal 500 GC Powerlist: Switzerland. Congratulations to all the general counsel who have rightfully earned their place among the top legal professionals in the country.
Sara Maggi | Deputy Editor The Legal 500 GC Powerlist Series
