The Legal 500

Within Zurich, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a first tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG’s ‘very responsive, strongly knowledgeable and very business-oriented’ team recently advised Swiss National Bank on regulatory and compliance issues. Sandro Abegglen has ‘an excellent reputation in the industry’, Urs Pulver is recommended for structured finance work and Philippe Weber is ‘extraordinarily diligent, responsive, commercial and pragmatic’. Daniel Bono and Thomas Brönnimann’s promotions to partner in 2012 brought the number of partners in the practice to ten.

Within Capital markets, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a first tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG has ‘extremely good knowledge of the rules and precedents of the Swiss market’, and gives ‘innovative, clear and robust advice’. Its lawyers have ‘strong experience of acting on deals for both issuers and syndicate banks, allowing an informed view of the other side’s expectations’. Among recent transactions, the team advised Qatar Holding on its participation in Credit Suisse’s CHF3.8bn capital raising. Practice head François Bianchi is ‘always clear and practical and unequivocal’, and Philippe Weber is ‘commercial, provides very clear advice and is extremely hardworking’.

Within Dispute resolution, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a third tier firm,

‘Top quality in every respect’, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG’s team is ‘extremely business-oriented and to-the-point’, and includes ‘many very good young lawyers’. Peter Honegger and Daniel Eisele are highly rated for their ‘stunning, sophisticated trial tactics’, and sports arbitrator András Gurovits is ‘precise, professional and experienced’. Ernst Schmid heads the practice group. Recent cases for the practice include banking, shareholder and tax disputes.

Within EU, competition and WTO, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a second tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is representing several clients in competition investigations and also advised France Telecom on the competition aspects of its sale of Orange Communications to Matterhorn Mobile. Nicolas Birkhäuser has ‘vast knowledge in antitrust and competition law’, and Thomas Frick and András Gurovits are also ‘strong lawyers’.

Within Insolvency and corporate recovery, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a second tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG meets ‘high professional and ethical standards’, and is ‘well positioned internationally’. Recent headline cases include advising the liquidator of marketing agency ISMM AG/ISL, which is Switzerland’s second largest insolvency case to date. Practice co-heads Urs Pulver and Thomas Sprecher are recommended along with the ‘fast and responsive’ Marco Häusermann.

Within Intellectual property, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a second tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG provides ongoing advice to Healey Sports Cars Switzerland and Healey Automobile Consultants regarding worldwide trade mark, domain name and design protection strategy. Other clients include St Moritz Polo, Singapore Airlines and Procter & Gamble. Nicolas Birkhäuser and Thomas Frick are the main contacts.

Within Zurich, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a second tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is ‘leading the chasing pack in terms of Switzerland’s best law firms’. In particular, it is regarded ‘as one of the country’s finest banking firms’, and Sandro Abegglen is a leading name in this area. Its M&A and capital markets teams are also outstanding, and Philippe Weber is recommended.

Within Mergers and acquisitions, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a first tier firm,

Peter Isler’s ‘top league’ team at Niederer Kraft & Frey AG attracts praise for its ‘availability, reactivity and excellent command of both technical legal issues and industry’. In 2012, the firm advised KKR and Alliance Boots on the Swiss aspects of Walgreens’ acquisition of a 45% equity stake in Alliance Boots. The leading partners are the ‘technically excellent’ Urs Pulver, ‘focused transactional lawyer’ Andreas Casutt and Philippe Weber, who shows ‘exceptional work capacity and professionalism’.

Within Private banking, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a first tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is ‘a top-tier firm in Switzerland for private client work and private banking’, and its clients include private banks, charitable foundations, art dealers, and high-net-worth individuals. Markus Frey is ‘an excellent lawyer with a wealth of experience and strong international awareness’, and Edgar Paltzer gives ‘practical, on-point advice’.

Within Real estate and construction, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a third tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG has a strong record in corporate real estate and, in 2012, the firm advised DAL Deutsche Anlagen-Leasing on the sale of several real estate properties to transGourmet Schweiz. Practice head Andreas Vögeli is ‘excellent’.

Within TMT, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a second tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG has ‘excellent command of both technical legal issues and the telecoms industry’. The firm advised Orange Communications on its CHF2bn sale to Apax Partners. Key contacts András Gurovits and Daniel Eisele are ‘precise, professional and experienced’.

Within Tax, Niederer Kraft & Frey AG is a second tier firm,

Niederer Kraft & Frey AG leverages its top-tier banking and finance practice to attract instructions to advise clients on the tax aspects of finance and capital markets transactions. For example, the firm recently advised Siemens Financial Services on the tax aspects of a share deal. Daniela Schmucki and practice head Thomas Graf are recommended.