Professional notice
| Partners | 2 |
|---|---|
| Other senior lawyers | 1 |
| Associates and senior associates | 5 |
| Who’s Who Legal: Data nominees | 1 |
| Percentage of lawyers in Who’s Who Legal: Data | 13% |
| Key clients | Diem Association, Humabs BioMed, FRUSS AG and Join.Solutions |
Swiss firm Bär & Karrer boasts local expertise in all aspects of data protection, compliance and cybersecurity laws. With multilingual lawyers across the practice, it seamlessly handles cases in all language regions of the country. It also routinely works on GDPR-related projects in conjunction with international firms. The group’s services go beyond offering specialist legal advice to individuals and global companies; it also assists clients in developing data-driven products, acquiring rights and increasing data asset portfolios.
The team recently bid farewell to partner Jan Kleiner, who co-led the firm’s data protection group. He is now director of the FIFA football regulatory subdivision.
Team
Key partners in Bär & Karrer’s multidisciplinary privacy and data protection practice include Corrado Rampini, Michele Bernasconi and Christian Kunz. The firm also relies on counsel Jonas Bornhauser, who advises on IT and IP in addition to data protection.
Work highlights
The firm acted for Diem Association in developing a blockchain-based stablecoin payment system. Its role included drafting data protection documentation for the Meta-proposed project, implementing breach response procedures and handling the organisation’s overall data compliance. The firm continued to advise on all Swiss legal and regulatory aspects of the project after the association wound down and transferred to the US.
Bär & Karrer regularly represents US-based Vir Biotechnology and its Swiss subsidiary Humabs BioMeds in intra-group data sharing projects. Most recently, Rampini, along with four partners, assisted the companies in a cross-border data transfer matter that involved drafting agreements to outsource HR processes, as well as data protection advice while accessing employee records through the new HR tool.
Kunz is advising FRUSS, a virtual engagement platform, on all aspects of data protection related to the company’s metaverse project Pax.World.
Client references
“The responsiveness is outstanding.”
"Very efficient service, high quality standards, easy access, clear communication, fast replies, very customer-friendly.”
“Was able to provide tailored legal advice.”
In this digital and technology driven time, Bär & Karrer is the go-to address for companies that are faced with challenges of privacy and data protection law matters. We cover all needs in the areas of data, privacy & cybersecurity, so that our clients can benefit from tailor-made business-oriented legal advice.
What sets us apart:
Due to our locations in the German, French and Italian-speaking regions of Switzerland, we are ideally positioned to advise clients on all aspects of data, privacy and cybersecurity matters in any language region of Switzerland, or matters concerning cases in multiple jurisdictions across language barriers. For example, our advice covers data governance, data privacy-related processes, cross-border data flows, data localization, outsourcing, setting-up data protection documentation and training materials, the handling of data loss and data theft, including notifications of data protection authorities and data subjects.
We also assist Swiss and international clients with developing data-driven products and services, leverage technology to increase their data assets, monetize data and acquire rights in data while taking a privacy-by-design approach and meeting data ethics requirements. We regularly cooperate with correspondent law firms in international data, cybersecurity and data protection compliance projects, in particular in relation to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union, UK privacy law as well as certain aspects of US law (such as the California Consumer Privacy Act and the US CLOUD Act).
Together with international law firms around the world with whom we have long-term and strong relationships, we represent clients in data protection-related proceedings and requests globally, such as those concerning disclosure of data or data breaches or in cases brought before foreign data protection authorities.
Furthermore, we advise clients on the design of new business models and technologies (e.g., concerning artificial intelligence, virtual reality, internet of things, blockchain etc.) that they plan to implement in their companies. We also conduct data protection audits and impact assessments for clients and have provided our expertise in major M&A transactions dealing with complex data protection issues in the healthcare, IT and cloud computing sectors.
Our practice also has a strong focus on new developments in the European Union that may affect our clients, i.e., the Data Act, the Data Governance Act, the Digital Markets Act, the Artificial Intelligence Act and the Digital Services Act.
Thanks to our broad practice, we are familiar with data protection topics across all sectors, be it in M&A, banking and insurance, FinTech, blockchain / distributed ledger technologies, biotech and healthcare, internal investigations, joint ventures, telecom, sports, tourism, IT, media projects and new technologies.
Members of our data protection team co-author the Commentary on the Swiss Data Protection Act, a leading text on this subject, and contribute to other publications in the field including journals, briefings and newsletters, regularly speak on data protection matters at client events and seminars or conferences and lecture at institutes for higher education such as the University of St. Gallen (HSG).
About Bär & Karrer:
Bär & Karrer is a leading Swiss law firm with more than 200 lawyers in Zurich, Geneva, Lugano, Zug and Basel. The firm’s core business is advising clients on innovative and complex transactions and representing them in litigation, arbitration and regulatory proceedings. Clients range from multinational corporations to private individuals in Switzerland and around the world.
Contact:
P: +41 58 261 50 00
Email: [email protected]
Bär & Karrer
Brandschenkestrasse 90
8002 Zurich
Website: www.baerkarrer.ch