Mr Tobias Somary > CMS von Erlach Partners Ltd. > Zurich, Switzerland > Lawyer Profile

CMS von Erlach Partners Ltd.
Dreikönigstrasse 7
PO Box 8022 Zurich
Switzerland
Tobias Somary photo

Work Department

Private Clients, Dispute Resolution.

Position

Partner

Career

Tobias Somary heads the private client practice of CMS von Erlach Poncet, a leading law firm in Switzerland.

He specializes in inheritance maters, estate and succession planning, pre- & postnuptial agreements, estate administration, executorship, estate disputes as well as foundations & trusts. He has an excellent track record in representing clients in contentious estate disputes and trust litigation.

Tobias graduated from Zurich University in 1998. He was admitted to the bar in 2000 with distinction and joined CMS in the same year. Adding a postgraduate education, he studied at the Stanford University Law School where he earned a Master of Laws degree (LL.M. ’04) and subsequently worked with a California law firm before returning to CMS and making partner at the firm in 2008.

He is a Certified Specialist Inheritance Law (SBA) and a trusts and estates practitioner (TEP) with STEP.

Tobias is a frequent speaker at conferences and seminars on international estate planning.

He heads the Inheritance Chapter of the Zurich Bar Association.

Languages

German, English.

Memberships

Zurich and Swiss Bar Association, Successio (Association for Swiss and international estate planning), Inheritance Chapter of Zurich Bar Association (head), STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners), Stanford Club of Switzerland und Stanford Business School Alumni Association, Swiss Chapter.

Education

University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland), Licentiate of Laws – 1998 / Bar admission – 2000 / Stanford Law School, Stanford CA (USA), Master of Laws – 2004 / Certified Specialist SBA Inheritance Law – 2010.

Lawyer Rankings

Switzerland > Private client

CMS von Erlach Partners Ltd. covers a good range of matters from estate planning to matrimonial and inheritance disputes, contested wills and prenuptial agreements, handling matters for high and ultra-high net worth individuals as well as banks and family offices. Tobias Somary and Pierre Ducret lead the team. Somary, a specialist in cross-border estate planning is reputed for his depth of knowledge and ‘sophisticated approach to negotiation’. On the contentious side, Ducret is especially involved in international arbitration proceedings, both as counsel and arbitrator. A ‘true expert in the field’ Louise Lutz Sciamanna   is another key individual in the team.