Healthcare & Life Sciences
Oliver M. Brupbacher
Oliver Brupbacher is a dispute resolution and investigation partner with extensive experience in the Life Sciences and Healthcare sectors, including complex commercial and cross-border litigation, investigations and arbitration, as well as regulatory, corporate and compliance counseling and risk management.
Oliver's practice focuses on representing national and multinational clients in heavily regulated industries and at various stages of dispute resolution and investigations, including pre-dispute advice, crisis management and information governance.
As a former senior litigation counsel, global product lawyer and head of global discovery at Novartis, Oliver combines deep expertise in his areas of practice with an intimate understanding of industry and clients' needs at all organizational levels. Clients often turn to Oliver for rigorous, spirited and connected lawyering and management of their most complex and contentious challenges that require strategic and innovative thinking.
Oliver is recommended by Legal 500 2024 in Bär & Karrer's Tier 1 ranked practice areas of Regulatory, Compliance & Investigations, Litigation, and Healthcare & Life Sciences.
Markus Wang
Markus Wang heads the intellectual property team and co-heads the life sciences group of the firm. His practice covers a wide range of contentious and non-contentious patent, trademark, copyright and other IP-related issues, in particular in the pharmaceutical, biotech and IT sector. He frequently drafts and negotiates license, outsourcing and R&D agreements. Furthermore, he specializes in regulatory matters in the fields of life sciences and health care.
Markus Wang lectures on intellectual property law at the University of Fribourg. He has written two books on design protection and contributed chapters to the latest commentary on Swiss trademark law and to several books on other IP, IT and life sciences topics. Further, he has published several articles for periodicals in these fields.
Markus Wang is recognized as a leading practitioner in the field of intellectual property in professional and life sciences publications and listings such as Chambers Europe, European Legal Experts, Who's Who Legal, WTR 1000: The World's Leading Trademark Professionals and IAM Patent 1000.
Markus Schott
Markus Schott has broad experience in all kinds of regulatory and administrative law matters including governmental supervision, public procurement, and administrative sanctions. He advises and represents clients in the life science and food, banking, finance and insurance, transportation and infrastructure sectors. He also drafts expert opinions in these fields.
Markus Schott is also specialized in representing clients in administrative and civil litigation proceedings as well as international administrative and legal assistance proceedings.
He teaches public economic law at the University of Zurich and he publishes regularly in his fields of interest.
Raphael Annasohn
Raphael Annasohn has broad experience in international and domestic M&A transactions in various industries focusing on private M&A and private equity, corporate reorganizations and restructurings as well as corporate law and general contractual matters, in particular shareholders' agreements. Furthermore, he specializes in the fields of venture capital and startups and assists clients in their ongoing commercial activities.
Cyrill Diefenbacher
Cyrill Diefenbacher has broad experience in national and international corporate tax matters.
He advises clients on tax-related questions in the area of M&A transactions / restructurings / financing, but also has broad experience in advising clients in the area of tax compliance. He frequently works on M&A transactions (buy-side or sell-side advice over all stages of the transaction, advice on management incentive schemes), restructurings and reorganizations and provides advice on various national or international corporate tax matters. His area of expertise includes Swiss VAT.
Cyrill Diefenbacher regularly speaks in the area of M&A tax / corporate tax law and publishes specialist articles in the field of taxes. He is a lecturer at the EXPERTsuisse Swiss Certified Tax Expert education program and regularly speaks at different tax seminars.
Joel Fischer
Joel Fischer's practice focuses on banking and finance, internal investigations and white-collar crime, M&A as well as general corporate and commercial matters.
He advises banks, insurance companies, fintechs and other companies on regulatory and transactional matters. He furthermore regularly assists clients in large-scale internal investigations and complex white-collar criminal and regulatory enforcement proceedings before Swiss and foreign authorities (incl. U.S. authorities). He also specializes in corporate governance questions and advises clients on the development and implementation of compliance programs.
Drawing from his further experience as a management consultant with a leading global consulting firm he understands the business needs of financial institutions, and tailors his legal advice to them accordingly.
Joel Fischer is a member of the editorial board of a legal periodical on corporate and capital markets law (Zeitschrift für Gesellschafts- und Kapitalmarktrecht, GesKR) and regularly publishes in his fields of work.
Joel Fischer won the Rising Star of the Year Award at the IFLR Europe Awards 2020.
Mariel Hoch
Mariel Hoch is one of Bär & Karrer’s leading M&A partners and co-head of the Public M&A department. She has broad experience across a wide range of industries and focuses on listed companies and public takeover offers. In addition, she specializes in M&A related litigation and advises listed companies on corporate and regulatory matters. She leads complex transactions for industrial clients as well as private equity investors. Mariel is highly regarded by her sophisticated clients, peers and international law firms.
With Mariel Hoch, Bär & Karrer has successfully maintained its leading market position in Public M&A, as she exhibited strong leadership skills and ability to develop talent within listed companies and Public M&A practice.
Luca Jagmetti
Luca Jagmetti has specialized in national and international private M&A transactions in different industries, venture capital investments, corporate restructurings and general corporate, commercial and employment matters, including related litigation and administrative proceedings. During his practice, he gained particular experience in complex asset deals, management participation schemes, up-/cross-stream topics, large outsourcing and procurement projects and regarding the logistics industry in general.
Luca Jagmetti has several speaking engagements on asset transactions, legal due diligence and other M&A topics (e.g. Akademie der Treuhand-Kammer; Seminar on Mergers & Acquisitions for practitioners; Course on Commercial Law of the University of St. Gallen).
According to The Legal 500 2016 he is "very knowledgeable and speedy". IFLR 2018 lists him as noticeable practitioner. Luca Jagmetti is jointly ranked first in Mergermarket's Profile League Table for 2016's most prolific individual DACH legal advisors.
Nadja Jaisli Kull
Nadja Jaisli co-heads Bär & Karrer's arbitration practice and specializes in international commercial arbitration and litigation. She has extensive experience in representing clients before Swiss courts and in international arbitrations (both ad hoc and institutional), involving a wide array of matters. She has gained particular experience in the banking and finance, the pharmaceutical and the construction industries and regularly handles complex disputes arising from M&A transactions, joint ventures and shareholders' agreements, license and supply agreements as well as inheritance disputes. In addition to her work as party counsel, Nadja Jaisli frequently sits as arbitrator (in particular under ICC, Swiss, DIS and VIAC Rules and in ad hoc proceedings).Nadja Jaisli serves as a Vice President of the ICC Swiss Commission on Arbitration and ADR and as a member of the Swiss Nomination Committee that proposes arbitrator candidates to the ICC Court in Paris. She is also a member of the Executive Committee and of the Board of the Swiss Arbitration Association (ASA) and regularly speaks and publishes in the field of international dispute resolution. She is listed in Chambers Global and Chambers Europe, Legal 500 and by Who's Who Legal in the fields of arbitration and litigation. Who's Who Legal ranked her amongst the four most highly regarded future leaders in arbitration 2018 and 2019 in Europe, listed her as a global leader in arbitration since 2020 as well as a global elite thought leader in litigation. In 2021 and 2022, Nadja Jaisli was awarded with the Europe Women in Business Law Award as Commercial Arbitration Lawyer of the Year.
Christian Kunz
Dr. Christian Kunz is an expert in the field of data, data protection, cybersecurity and technology law.
He advises Swiss and international clients on data, data protection, cybersecurity and technology law matters, including cybercrime issues, the development and implementation of data strategies and data protection-related processes, the use and monetisation of data, (cloud) outsourcings of data, international data transfers and data disclosure requests (e.g., based on MLAT requests or the U.S. Cloud Act), and data breach incident management and response.
He also advises on data-driven business models and platform solutions (XaaS, cloud services, IoT, online platforms, digital marketplaces), advanced technology projects (blockchain / distributed ledger technology (DLT), AI, Machine Learning, Big Data, Metaverse, NFT, etc.), digital infrastructure and technology transactions, and other complex Swiss and European data protection, cybersecurity and technology law issues. Besides that, Christian conducts large-scale internal investigations and e-discovery projects.
He is KnowledgeNet Chapter Chair of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) in Switzerland. He regularly gives lectures, participates in panel discussions, publishes scientific articles and newsletters and holds internal and external trainings in his areas of expertise. He is a lecturer for the CAS Data Protection course at the University of Zurich.
Christian was recognized as Rising Star in the area of data protection & data security at the IFLR Rising Stars Awards EMEA 2022. He was also ranked by Leaders League in 2022 as excellent for data protection as well as IT and outsourcing advice in Switzerland and recommended by Legal 500 EMEA for data privacy and data protection in 2023.
Vera Naegeli
Vera Naegeli is experienced in international and domestic M&A transactions and she advises listed and non-listed companies, investors and financial institutions on a broad range of corporate, capital markets, and corporate governance matters.
Vera Naegeli heads the ESG practice of Bär & Karrer. She regularly advises clients, including listed and financial market supervised companies, on sustainability, environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics and regarding compliance matters.
Vera Naegeli is ranked as a recommended practitioner for corporate governance in the Lexology Index (formerly Who’s Who Legal) since 2024. She has been awarded with a rising star partner distinction for M&A in the IFLR1000 Rankings 2025 and won the IFLR Rising Star Award EMEA for M&A and the jurisdiction award for Switzerland in 2022. Euromoney's Expert Guide lists her as Rising Star in the fields of Corporate/M&A/Private Equity.
Vera Naegeli teaches at the Executive School of Management, Technology and Law (Executive MBA) of the University of St. Gallen and at the Center for Executive Education of the University of Zurich. She regularly contributes to publications in her areas of expertise.
Christoph Neeracher
Christoph Neeracher specializes in international and domestic M&A transactions (focusing on private M&A and private equity transactions, including secondary buyouts, public to private transactions and distressed equity), transaction finance, venture capital, startups, corporate restructurings, relocations, corporate law, general contract matters (e.g. joint ventures, partnerships and shareholders agreements) and all directly related areas such as employment matters for key employees (e.g. employee participation and incentive agreements).
He is experienced in a broad range of national and international transactions both sell and buy side (including corporate auction processes) and the assistance of clients in their ongoing corporate and commercial activities. Additionally, Christoph Neeracher represents clients in litigation proceedings relating to his specialization.
Chambers Global and Europe rank him as a leader in the field of M&A (since 2010) and IFLR 1000 lists him as one of the leading lawyers in Switzerland (since 2012). The International Who's Who of M&A Lawyers lists Christoph Neeracher as one of the world's leading M&A lawyers. The Legal 500 (2012) describes him as "extremely experienced in M&A matters and very strong in negotiations" and ranks him among the leading individuals. Christoph Neeracher is ranked first in Mergermarket's Profile League Table for 2016's most prolific individual DACH legal advisors.
Mani Reinert
Mani Reinert’s practice covers all aspects of antitrust law in a wide range of industries. He routinely represents clients in merger control filings before the Swiss Competition Commission and coordinates multijurisdictional merger control filings. Furthermore, Mani Reinert advises and represents clients in administrative proceedings before the Swiss Competition Commission. In addition, he assists clients in dawn raids as well as in the implementation of compliance programs and advises clients regarding the administration of distribution networks.
In Chambers Europe, Mani Reinert is ranked in band 1 of the leading lawyers for Competition/Antitrust. Mani Reinert is recognised as a leading lawyer in The Legal 500 Hall of Fame in Switzerland in the area of competition law.
Philippe Seiler
Philippe Seiler has broad experience in international and domestic private M&A transactions in various industries with a special focus on life science and health care transactions (incl. medtech, pharma, healthcare providers in various industries, suppliers to healthcare providers etc.). Philippe Seiler does not only cover big size transactions and takeovers but also focuses on small- and mid-size M&A transactions, private equity transactions as well as venture capital and startup transactions. Furthermore, he advises clients on regulatory matters relating to life science and health care law outside of M&A transactions.
Philippe Seiler is praised for his pragmatic and solution-oriented advice while at the same time having an excellent technical knowledge. Due to his extensive transaction experience he has a fast and good understanding of the business and the process. Legal 500 ranks Philippe Seiler as a Key Contact for Healthcare and Life Sciences transactions and Who's Who Legal lists him in M&A and Governance. In addition, Philippe Seiler was listed as a "Rising Star in Corporate/M&A/Private Equity" by Legal Media Group.
Philippe Seiler has frequent speaking engagements on M&A-related topics and teaches regularly at a number of private and public Universities (e.g. LL.M. of the University of Zurich, Switzerland; Executive MBA University of St. Gallen).
Markus Wang
Markus Wang heads the intellectual property team and co-heads the life sciences group of the firm. His practice covers a wide range of contentious and non-contentious patent, trademark, copyright and other IP-related issues, in particular in the pharmaceutical, biotech and IT sector. He frequently drafts and negotiates license, outsourcing and R&D agreements. Furthermore, he specializes in regulatory matters in the fields of life sciences and health care.
Markus Wang lectures on intellectual property law at the University of Fribourg. He has written two books on design protection and contributed chapters to the latest commentary on Swiss trademark law and to several books on other IP, IT and life sciences topics. Further, he has published several articles for periodicals in these fields.
Markus Wang is recognized as a leading practitioner in the field of intellectual property in professional and life sciences publications and listings such as Chambers Europe, European Legal Experts, Who's Who Legal, WTR 1000: The World's Leading Trademark Professionals and IAM Patent 1000.
Laura Widmer
Laura Widmer's practice focuses on advising Swiss and foreign individuals and entities on various aspects of Swiss employment law, in particular with regard to individual and mass dismissals, reorganizations, compensation plans, employment litigation and transactions. Furthermore, she regularly represents clients in employment disputes before state courts.
Martina Athanas
Martina Athanas is a member of the firm's internal investigations practice group and its litigation team. Her practice is focused on conducting and advising on all aspects of internal investigations into bribery, fraud and compliance. Martina also regularly advises on white collar crime and cross-border legal issues (including Swiss blocking statutes and data privacy laws), and is often involved in proceedings for international mutual legal assistance and administrative assistance.
During a secondment at the Swiss financial regulator, FINMA, Martina was able to work on regulatory matters from the government enforcement perspective. She also gained valuable insight into legal matters from a client's perspective during her secondment at the Litigation & Investigations team at UBS.
Team Services
Advising companies and other stakeholders in healthcare and life sciences requires in-depth knowledge of the sector and its regulatory environment.
Navigating the regulatory demands of the healthcare and life sciences sector in a way that strengthens the business and increases value lies at the core of our expertise.
We advise on all regulatory and legal topics relating to the healthcare and life science industries. Our clients include pharmaceutical companies, medtech companies, hospitals, laboratories, manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and other healthcare providers. We represent our clients in contractual matters, M&A, administrative investigations and proceedings as well as in litigation and arbitration.
Moreover, we draft and negotiate agreements relating to the development and distribution of pharmaceutical and other products as well as the use of the intellectual property on which they rely.
Our areas of activity include:
- Regulatory advice
- Advice regarding promotion and advertising
- Representation in administrative investigations and proceedings as well as in court litigations and arbitrations
- Research, development, licensing, collaboration, marketing and distribution agreements
- M&A transactions