It brings me great pleasure to present The Legal 500’s highly anticipated GC Powerlist: Switzerland 2024. This publication celebrates the outstanding abilities of the leading general counsel in the confederation. Within its pages, we embark on an enlightening journey, exploring crisis management and resilience-building amidst instability, the adoption of emerging technologies, the integration of diversity and sustainability into the daily tasks of general counsel, and insightful perspectives on M&A transactions from some of our distinguished powerlisters.

The GC Powerlist: Switzerland stands as a highlight in our in-house legal research team’s portfolio each year. This edition is marked by its diverse content, with featured in-house lawyers offering unique perspectives, addressing specific challenges, and sharing personal journeys that serve as a wellspring of inspiration for their peers.

One prominent theme that emerged from our research is the increasingly critical role of in-house legal teams in fostering resilience within their organisations. Recent years have underscored the necessity for legal teams to remain flexible and agile in responding to rapid changes in the legal and regulatory landscape during times of instability and crisis. To effectively navigate such challenges, it is imperative for the legal function to intimately understand the organisation’s business strategy and resilience plans, translating new laws and regulations into actionable guidance for management promptly. Judith Bischof, general counsel at Clariant, emphasises the integration of legal teams into crisis management efforts: ‘the legal team is integrated into crisis management teams to provide timely legal advice and support. The key is to foster collaboration between legal and other departments and to stay proactive in addressing legal challenges during turbulent times.’ Eyal Tavor, general counsel at Deloitte Switzerland, expands on the importance of leadership and providing the necessary tools for legal teams to navigate crises proactively: ‘More than ever, it lies within the responsibility of the person leading the internal legal department to ensure proper development opportunities for their team members in areas beyond legal expertise and skills in order to be in a position to proactively create additional substantial value and navigate appropriately. The necessity to really understand the organisation’s business, the challenges it faces during periods of instability or crisis and the overall strategy it pursues in such times is an absolute must in order to be in a position to align the legal strategy with the broader business strategy and thereby helping the business to grow and succeed even further.’

With a global focus on ESG issues, Swiss-based in-house lawyers are at the forefront of embedding sustainability practices within their departments. Emmanuel Grand, group general counsel at Recipharm, underscores the pivotal role of general counsel in ESG initiatives: ‘The general counsel will continue playing a pivotal role on ESG moving forward, not only in the context of our recently established ESG Committee, with a special emphasis on governance and corporate governance, but also on all our reporting activities, and liaising directly or indirectly with relevant stakeholders’. Diana Imbach Haumueller, head of legal and compliance group asset management at Helvetia Group, highlights the importance of diversity and inclusion in promoting motivation within teams: ‘ I am convinced that diversity and inclusion are a key success factor for any team. Therefore, when recruiting I focus also on these aspects. I am lucky enough to work in an environment where I am flexible to accommodate specific needs, for example, for working parents or ambitioned athletes. Together with an open mind, innovative working models such as home and flex office as well as a true spirit to use those models helped me to build a highly competent, diverse, and inclusive team. Especially in challenging times, it is crucial to have a motivated team. This promotes efficiency and resilience, which is a key element for a high-performing legal team. I truly believe that more diverse and inclusive teams are in a better shape to tackle the challenges of today’s work environment’.

On behalf of The Legal 500, I extend sincere gratitude to all who contributed their time and insights to the research process. Congratulations to all featured in the 2024 edition of the GC Powerlist: Switzerland.

Sara Maggi| Deputy Editor GC Powerlist Series

Axiom has been a proud sponsor of the GC Powerlist event for a number of years. Our continued support reflects our commitment to recognising the innovators and trailblazers within in-house counsel across Switzerland. The GC Powerlist is more than just a list—it is a celebration of the visionaries who are shaping the future of legal services.

Over two decades ago, Axiom pioneered the category of Alternative Legal Services Providers (ALSPs) with a simple idea: there had to be a better way to deliver innovative legal services to in-house counsel. Since then, the industry has grown exponentially, evolving into a diverse ecosystem with multiple segments working towards the same goal.

We value this evolution because it aligns with our mission to connect companies, from growing mid-market firms to Fortune 500 enterprises, with the world’s most experienced and specialised legal talent. Axiom’s high standards resonate with our clients and lawyers alike—90% of our clients say our lawyers are as good or better than their law firm lawyers, and our talent has an industry leading nps score of 68!

Innovation and change require dedication, and the GC Powerlist: Switzerland celebrates those who embrace these challenges. We applaud the legal leaders featured in the list, recognising their strength, creativity, and strategic role in driving business success in today’s complex environment. Here is to the continued success of the in-house counsel community in Switzerland and beyond.

Baker McKenzie is one of the largest law firms in Switzerland. Our offices in Geneva and Zurich have been an integral part of the Swiss legal landscape for more than half a century, firmly establishing us as a prominent force for our domestic and foreign clients. Our vast, experienced team of experts, composed of more than 130 lawyers, is providing Swiss and multinational industry players, financial institutions, private equity houses and insurance companies with toptier legal advice. We have a fantastic track record for domestic and cross-border advice in all areas of business law. The dedication to providing clients with practical and innovative solutions, along with the quality of our work, has been consistently recognized with top rankings by Chambers and Partners and Legal 500.

As global citizens, industry savvy, diverse and with a thirst for innovation, our horizon does not end in Switzerland. Our unique global footprint with 74 offices in 45 countries allows us to bring the right talent at the right time to every client issue, regardless of where the client is. And since our clients want lawyers who are prepared to lead, differentiate and adapt in a constantly changing world, we have built on our strengths and abilities to adopt a new type of thinking and use cutting-edge legal technologies to help clients overcome the challenges of competing in today’s new world economic order.