CMS > Zurich, Switzerland > Firm Profile

‘Very innovative, business oriented real estate team. Always well connected and up to date regarding new legal developments in Swiss regulations.’

‘Dr.Stefan Gerster: Exceptional track record in real estate institutional transactions Dr. Sybille Schnyder: Exceptional track record in real estate institutional transactions.’

‘People, collaboration, diversity, complementary skills.’

‘They get things done, goal orientation, thinking along.’

‘Individuals to be mentioned: Stefan Gerster, Sibylle Schnyder, Thomas Zweifel.’

‘Good collaboration between senior and junior team members. Very detail and customer oriented.’

‘Very good knowledge of competition law in Switzerland due to experience and relationship to the authorities.’

‘Marquard Christen in the area of anti-trust. Very well versed, quick to distil the primary issues in a given fact pattern, and excellent ability to provide and discuss possible risks and how best to mediate them.’

‘The competition team of CMS Switzerland is unique for its expert knowledge and high degree of specialization in competition law (in particular antitrust and unfair competition law), responsiveness, experience in handling competition law investigations and appeal proceedings (knowing all the little dos and don’ts).

‘My key contact with CMS is Marquard Christen who has been specializing in competition law for now more than 20 years, I believe. He “lives and breathes” competition law. Marquard is not only one of the most knowledgeable competition lawyers I have worked with, but also a very down to earth person.’

‘The CMS team convinces with a well-balanced and knowledgeable team with excellent availability.’

‘Alain Raemy knows our industry extremely well. He quickly grasps the legal and commercial aspects of the assignment. He is a brilliant analyst, has an excellent business acumen and a solution-oriented approach, always provides appropriate suggestions and presents them in a comprehensible way.’

‘Highly efficient and business oriented firm.’

‘Daniel Kinzer: Very competent and highly dedicated, very responsive, able to deliver excellent results under pressure.’

‘Pierre Ducret is extremely reactive and efficient.’

‘Well balanced co-operation and mix between partners and associates. The team has the ambition to dig deep into the business-specific material and implements it with great effort.’

‘With Reto Hunsperger, you can sense the inner drive to get the best out of a situation. He is dedicated, persistent and gets to the point.’

‘CMS has a well-balanced litigation team with a good mix of knowledgeable associates, trainees and very skilled partners. Availability is always excellent.’

‘Jodok Wicki is an extremely knowledgeable and experienced litigator with a profound knowledge of our industry. He analyses matters quickly and thoroughly and always provides valuable advice as well as food for thought.’

‘Team with a good mix of very knowledgeable partners and hard-working associates. Very fast response time.’

‘Christian Gersbach has a profound knowledge in Swiss employment practice and a very coherent and pleasant way to explain it to me as a client.’

‘CMS von Erlach Partners Ltd represents an excellent partner for us, which is characterized by pragmatic, goal-oriented and professional work with a hands-on mentality.’

‘Our direct contacts stand out because they are available and willing to go the extra mile for us. They work as hard as we do and give us the feeling that we are not alone even in challenging situations.’

‘Business perspective and comprehensive advice on specific queries.’

‘Work with Christian Gersbach can be described as business oriented advice and partnership.’

‘Often representing Insurers in coverage disputes. Very experienced in the area of claims handling and liability assessments for Insurers. Strong focus on Cyber Insurance, maintains a Cyber Insurance – Emergency – Hotline on behalf of various Insurers.’

‘Dr.Jodok Wicki is an excellent lawyer with very much expertise in the Insurance industry. He is quick-witted and very strong in the strategical analysis of cases. He is great for complex, difficult Insurance or Re-Insurance claims.’

‘I have only worked with Dr. Kaspar Landolt, and in a fairly limited capacity. On behalf of my employer, an American insurance company, I have sought Dr. Landolt’s counsel on Swiss law as it applies to foreign insurers. I have found Dr. Landolt both knowledgeable and pragmatic in his approach. I trust his judgement and his counsel which I find invaluable.’

‘Responsive and pragmatic.’

‘Kaspar Landolt has been very easy to work with: knowledgeable and user friendly.’

‘Pierre Ducret is a great lawyer who fights very well for his clients and was able to really help me in my case.’

‘Pierre Ducret was my lawyer and he did exceptional work.’

‘We deal essentially with the expert in the financial industry (Banking and financial law). The partners of the law firm benefit from an exceptional expertise. We always had rapid answers and  built with them true partnership.’

‘The partners are personally involved and from the best in the market. In particular Vaïk Müller, partner in Banking services was outstanding. Close to the market, pragmatic and result oriented.’

‘The M&A team adjust very easily to the size of merger deal you bring and produce adequate size of merger documents. Audrey and Pascal are very flexible and bring solutions 24/7 which makes look any responsible great to have overcome closing obstacles.’

‘Competent, well connected, efficient.’

‘Andrio Orler’s advice is characterized by a true knowledge of the client’s overall situation; he anticipates projects and gives strategic advice, he will answer the questions you have not thought of asking. The tax planning is efficient and competent without being overly aggressive; he is able to understand the client’s mindset.’

‘Stefan Gerster: Very competent and highly dedicated, very responsive and deal-oriented, able to deliver excellent results under pressure. Deep knowledge of the real estate industry.’

‘CMS covers the whole spectrum of corporate and tax law. They know the Swiss market and market participants extremely well and are exceptionally well networked on the legal market. Every lawyer from CMS has a remarkable knowledge of complex tax matters. The team have a lot of experience and bring innovative solutions with a holistic approach. In addition to its comprehensive legal capability, the firm has an incredibly modern set-up. This meant that there were no delays in the course of our cooperation during the pandemic-related restrictions. Video conferencing and truly state of the art IT and communication channels made it possible. Not surprisingly, the firm’s cost rates are always fair and comprehensible in every respect.’

‘Mark Cagienard is my first person of contact and a very much appreciated legal colleague. With many years of experience in the practice of tax law, he is truly a luminary in the field of tax law with a strong technical knowledge. He has a great transactional experience advising on cross-border matters. It is amazing how smoothly the cooperation with Mark Cagienard always runs and it is a real pleasure to work with him. It is a delight for me to recommend him to LEGAL 500 with the utmost conviction.’

‘The CMS team is unique in its in depth knowledge about blockchain, crypto and Defi which helped us as greatly over the past years. Not only did they help us manoeuvre a public token sale but also they helped us formulate how we have to deal with regulatory uncertainty in this cutting edge industry that lacks clear governmental guidelines and case studies. Especially in areas such as tax implications of token sales and the classifications of tokens did the CMS team help us greatly.’

‘The Team of CMS von Erlach Partners Ltd – Zurich – Switzerland advised and supported us in antitrust proceedings extremely competently and effective. We were indicted in complex proceedings under antitrust law. CMS von Erlach Partners Ltd has exceeded our expectations with its extensive experience in antitrust law.’

‘Marquard Christen: dynamic, very competent, determined, goal-oriented, empathetic, very pleasant conversation partner. Fabian Martens: dynamic, quick comprehension, competent. The two are extremely strong.’

‘Kaspar Landolt is an exceptional lawyer with an extremely high legal expertise and always very pleasant to work with.’

‘Niklaus Zaugg is a very bright, yet down to earth practitioner who always understands the client’s needs. He is very good at coming up with viable, well-founded and at the same time pragmatic solutions for complex problems. Niklaus has always provided services of very high quality within short time limits.’

‘David Hürlimann/ Tanja Schaub are a great tax think tank. Tobias Somary outstanding in looking at and dealing with the overall picture of the cases.’

‘I found Tobias Somary and Louise Lutz Sciamanna extremely knowledgeable, intelligent and professional. They combined this with a genuinely collaborative approach that was very helpful. I worked with them on a cross border matter in which we had to deal with the requirements of competing jurisdictions, and their professionalism made what could have been a really difficult and fraught process remarkably smooth.’

‘Pierre Ducret is an outstanding lawyer.’

‘Tobias Somary is an excellent inheritance lawyer with a capacity to make a deal happen even in difficult situations. Sarah Busca Bonvin is a tax specialist with in-depth knowledge. Her experience at the Geneva tax administration is an asset.’

‘The team has outstanding personal and professional skills and knows how to apply them in a client-oriented manner. In addition, the international network of CMS works excellently.’

‘The excellent combination of personal and professional skills is exceptional. In this context, I would like to particularly highlight Tobias Somary and Louise Lutz Sciamanna.’

‘Outstanding breadth of work and response on tax and corporate matters relating to personal taxation, family businesses, asset protection and investment taxation.’

‘Tobias Somary is first class and clients like his style and the way that he explains complicated tax issues in a straightforward way. I have had positive feedback from clients whom I have introduced. He co-ordinates advice across disciplines in a very coherent and understandable way.’

‘Deep devotion to good service and exceptional knowledge.’

‘The group was extremely responsive, and the project led by Marquard Christen was handled in a very professional manner with a key focus on ensuring that we as plaintiffs in the proceedings had a clear sense of the applicable law, the related process and the arguments that presented the best options for success.’

‘The people I met were very competent and honest; telling me exactly what they could and also what they could not deliver. They gave me a lot of information that was very useful for me.’

‘Excellent qualifications combined with lots of personality.’

‘Marquard Christen always responded very quickly and with insight to my inquiries. As a lawyer with a lot of experience in human rights issues, I am sure that he brings legal knowledge and entrepreneurial know-how to the table. I felt he understood the issues of an SME company in Switzerland.’

‘Personal, customer-oriented approach, large network, cost-efficient.’

‘The team is very competent and friendly. The cooperation was extremely pleasant and was influenced by both sides. The great strength for us lay in the large internal CMS network, distributed all over Europe. In this way, the necessary specialist knowledge could easily be consulted within the law firm.’

‘We worked directly with Marquard Christen and Fabian Martens. Our two partners didn’t just work on the project, but expanded the project’s goals with their valuable input and delivered a result that we found very satisfactory. Through their expertise in the field of competition law, we were able to gain valuable insights. The work of CMS helped us to set up comprehensive compliance management.’

‘We were extremely impressed by the reactivity, the ability to understand commercial and strategic stakes, and to advise on innovative solutions in a timely manner.’

‘On top of first-class legal expertise, a strong business acumen and the ability to formulate out-of-the-box and tailor-made solutions for clients. Very reactive and efficient. Very personable team.’

‘The law firm goes an extra mile for the satisfaction of its clients. An “all-around carefree package”.’

‘Kaspar Landolt is an exceptional lawyer with an extremely high legal expertise and very pleasant to work with.’

‘The capital markets practice at CMS is very well-connected with the respective ecosystem partners. As a client, we benefit from a greatly accelerated handling of the overall process.’

‘We mainly work together with Matthias Kuert. We appreciate his depth of detail and expertise. He has the unique ability to navigate complex challenges and prioritise appropriate solution proposals based on legal, regulatory, commercial and technical aspects.’

‘Team is highly skilled, far above market standard.’

‘Matthias Kuert is a real “marathon-man”, never giving up and 100% committed to client and case.’

‘The knowledge of the team, their availability and reactivity.’

‘Great corporate culture with very humble team members. Experts in every field/area.’

‘Alain Raemy (together with his team) has a very entrepreneurial mindset, looking for unconventional solutions, something we rarely see with lawyers.’

‘Very committed team and very complementary, even during holiday periods. High quality level.’

‘Alain Raemy and his team were able to find very good solutions to our transactions. They have been part of our success in gaining deals.’

‘The depth of the team’s knowledge is unrivalled. They quickly ensure that specific people with subject matter expertise are engaged on your file so that you have immediate access to the lawyers who can best advise you.’

‘Matthias Kuert is a standout performer. His response time is immediate and he is commercially saavy. His advice is always given from the perspective of the business he is advising so that it is not just “legal” advice but “Commercially sensible legal advice”’

‘Always responsive, creative in their solutions. Great knowledge of the overall market trends.’

‘Tina is an amazing partner both professionally and personally.’

‘Tina is creative, understands issues quickly and provides practical advice in a short time. She is easy to work with and has an outstanding reputation.’

‘The CMS team is unique in its depth of knowledge about blockchain, crypto and DeFi.’

‘Mark Cagienard: In depth understanding of the technical implications of various digital assets. In depth understanding of how to structure token sales to make them tax optimized. In depth understanding of general startup revenue tax implications.’

‘Tina Balzli is one of the leading partners in Switzerland for the regulated crypto financial industry.’

‘The sports law team is very solid and enjoys a deserved strong reputation.’

‘We work on a regular basis with Mr Olivier Carrard and Mr Pierre Ducret. They all have a extended practice in the advising and dispute resolution in the sports industry. Moreover, in addition to their undisputed legal knowledge and long experience in the field, they all have excellent listening skills and above-average practicality.’

‘Olivier Carrard is an outstanding professional and understands the main issues in sports disputes to be able to deliver quality awards.’

‘Pierre Ducret is an outstanding professional with great knowledge and has the ability to translate in simple words complex matters.’

‘Top level in terms of know-how and experience in the field of taxation.’

‘You feel that in addition to technical skills they have experience and this allows them to be creative and proactive.’

‘Every lawyer from CMS has a remarkable knowledge of complex tax matters. The team have a lot of experience and bring innovative solutions with a holistic approach. In addition to its comprehensive legal capability, the firm has an incredibly modern set-up.’

‘Mark Cagienard is my first person of contact and a very much appreciated legal colleague. With many years of experience in the practice of tax law, he is truly a luminary in the field of tax law with a strong technical knowledge. Mark Cagienard has a great transactional experience advising on cross-border matters.’

‘The CMS team is unique in its in-depth knowledge about blockchain, crypto and Defi.’

‘Interdisciplinary team providing a full service range.’

‘The teams are well managed by the leading partner and not overly involved, only when necessary. Generally a strong point of contact with lead partner means that client avoids excessive work with supporting team members.’

‘Mark Cagienard is outstanding. Intelligent, Knowledgeable, Creative, Efficient. Never worked with a better tax lawyer.’

‘Jodok Wicki – excellent arbitrator.’

‘We have an exceptional working relationship with Niklaus Zaugg as he supported us already in various arbitration cases. Very pragmatic and solution oriented approach. Work products always are of very high quality.’

‘The arbitration team lead by Niklaus Zaugg is always to the point and extremely responsive.’

‘Niklaus Zaugg is a very bright, yet down to earth practitioner who always understands the client’s needs. He is very good at coming up with viable, well-founded and at the same time pragmatic solutions for complex problems. Niklaus has always provided services of very high quality within short time limits.’