Associations and foundations law provides the legal framework in relation to the incorporation, the organisation and the management of those legal entities, including, but not limited to, sports (cf. sport).

Whether you are a football player, a darts player or simply if you are willing to meet on a regular basis with friends for a specific purpose, and would like to create a legal framework for those activities, as soon as you become a member of a club, you are a member of the association that this club constitutes, in principle. Similarly, should you wish to support a specific field or matter, it may be interesting for you to materialise this support by way of creating a foundation. The Swiss Civil Code (“SCC”) constitutes the legal framework, providing as a general basis the minimum rights and duties of the members and bodies of any association or foundation located in Switzerland. The SCC being of a rather broad nature, a certain number of associations, in particular in the sports field, have decided to implement their headquarters in Switzerland: FIFA (in Zurich), UEFA (in Nyon), IOC (in Lausanne), etc. are constituted as associations under Swiss law.

In your capacity as member of an association or a foundation (or a member of one of its committees or bodies), a certain number of legal questions might arise, in particular in relation to the organisation, the management and the decisional process. In this respect, for instance, if you intend to hire foreign citizens in order to further strengthen your club, you will need to abide by certain rules of Swiss law, in relation to working permits or permits of establishment of foreign citizens (cf. Stay and work in Switzerland). In order to validly create your association or your foundation, you will require proper statutes, respectively a foundation act. The Aubert-Hug law firm can assist you in those crucial steps. Finally, managing such legal entities may encompass, at times, the organisation of special events, for which various authorisations are required by Swiss law, in particular in relation to aspects of security.

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice in order to approach those situations in the best possible way, also by supporting you in the drafting or proofreading of documents.

Counsel

Consumption law governs the private acquisition and use of goods and services and regulates the relations between the professional and the consumer.

Consumption law applies to you, being when you just bought an electronic device that does not work, had to pay for roaming costs which you deem were undue, would like to commercialise specific goods, or plan to create an online platform to sell goods and services. Consumption law further applies directly to the drafting of general terms and conditions, to aggressive sales at your homeplace, if you find yourself confronted with issues in relation to a credit or a travel contract (in particular when you fly), or if you face a situation of disloyal competition (cf. Disloyal competition).

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice in order to approach those situations in the best possible way, also by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel

Family law encompasses the framework and organisation of the legal relations among family members, being while living together, or at the various steps of married life, i.e. engagement, marriage, separation and ultimately, sometimes, divorce. It also organises and provides the legal framework of the children of the couple, where applicable.

Whether you are about to get married, or about to move in with your future cohabitee, if your couple is wondering how this future life will affects your legal situation, family law provides various answers to those questions. In this context, if you are about to decide to live apart, or even to divorce, a legal support is most of the time essential to enable you to go through those difficult situations in the most suitable way.

Family law further provides for measures for protection of the marital union. They regulate the time between the separation and the divorce, which can at times be delicate. Divorce can be pronounced following a joint request, based on a comprehensive or partial agreement between the spouses. If the future ex-spouses do not agree, proceedings at the petition of one spouse is also possible, after living apart for at least two years.

In the context of a divorce, there is often much at stake. First, a divorce will have impacts on parental rights and obligations towards the children, in particular with respect to the parental responsibility and residence, as well as child maintenance contributions. But divorce will also be about determining who may remain in the family home (cf. Lease), and how to deal with the various assets of the couple, including the pension funds. Finally, a divorce may affect your rights to stay and live in Switzerland, if you are a foreign citizen married to a Swiss spouse (cf. Stay and work in Switzerland).

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice in order to approach those situations in the best possible way, also by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel

The law of succession governs the transmission of a person’s assets at the time of his death.

The law of nature provides that a person’s life is, by essence, limited in time. Human laws deal with the delicate situation which consists in one person’s own death or the death of someone’s close relative. After such loss, it is however not rare that, with respect to the heirs, family or personal conflicts resurface. In complex cases, those conflicts may even lead to judicial proceedings in front of courts. Those situations are never easy to handle.

Furthermore, succession can involve also assets located in various countries, making it complex to identify which rules apply to the succession. This may vary from one country to another, and may depend on the assets’ localisation, on the domicile of the deceased, or other conditions.

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice and can support you with all questions you may have in relation to successions, also by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel

The law of neighbours governs the relations between neighbours, in order to ensure that their living together happens in a calm and peaceful manner.

Whether you are a tenant (cf. Lease), an individual owner or a co-owner in a condominium, you have rights towards your neighbours, within the legal boundaries. Potential disputes are often of a complex and technical nature, and sometimes bring up deeply hidden conflicts among the involved parties. The law of neighbours may therefore encompass aspects not directly related to properties but related to the daily life of neighbours. This may include conflicts involving threatening behaviour or harassment, the protection of a necessary right of way, or the need to stop incommoding smells or noises coming from an adjacent house or apartment.

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice in order to approach those situations in the best possible way, also by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel

Employment law governs the legal aspects of the relationship between employers and employees.

Whether you are self-employed or in a salaried capacity, whether you are a manager or an employee, as soon as you become active in a working environment, you become the subject of various rights, but also of specific obligations. In this regard, employment law deals with situations in which you may have found yourself, or in which you may one day find yourself, such as :

• What is the notice period to end the employment contract?
• What does the Collective Employment Contract provide for, in terms of schedules of work and extra hours?
• Should the company adopt internal staff regulations?
• In case the company plans to hire foreign employees, what are the necessary steps and authorisations that are required in order to properly comply with Swiss law? (cf. Stay and work in Switzerland)
• When should a work certificate be provided / can be asked?
• In case an employee is prevented from working, what are the legal consequences, with respect to social insurances e.g. loss of earnings compensation, unemployment, etc. (cf. Social insurances)
• Is the employment contract written in a simple and concise, yet complete way?

In order to answer those, or any other question that may arise in this context, the Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice, including supporting you in drafting and/or proofreading documents, as well as by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel

Tenancy law governs the legal aspects of the relationship between landlords and tenants.

Whether you live in an apartment, you are an owner of a house rented to a family, or you live in a shared flat with roommates, you will be a direct subject of tenancy law.

Everybody is, at some point in his or her life, confronted with situations where tenancy law is applicable. Those could be the following examples: wondering the notice period to terminate the lease contract, being residential or commercial premises; determining who shall remedy defects, damages or mould growth during the contract, what is the proceeding to follow in case of default of payment of the rent, of termination of the lease contract or in the event of expulsion. All those frequently asked questions often however turn out to be more complex and delicate than they originally seemed to be. The same applies to the family home and the clarification of whom is to remain in it in case of living apart or divorce (cf. Marriage and divorce). Other matters that are directly in connection with tenancy law are conflicts or disputes arising from the co-living with your neighbours (cf. Neighbourhood).

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice, also by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel

Bankruptcy law governs the proceedings of recovery of monetary claims in front of the competent authorities.

Whether you are a company or an individual, you may be confronted to a wrongful administrative prosecution, or to a third party which is not willing to pay his debt. Such dept can find its origin in an employment relationship (cf. Employment), a failure to pay the amount due following a sale, or an unpaid rent (voir aussi : Bail). If you are a foreign citizen living abroad or owning a company outside of Switzerland, if the debtor has its seat or headquarters in Switzerland, Swiss bankruptcy law will very likely apply.

Bankruptcy law provides the appropriate tools enabling you to object to an administrative prosecution, or, to the contrary, to seek recovery of what is owed to you. Financial claim recovery proceedings can sometimes last for a long period, from the initial claim for payment, until the final confiscation of the assets in order for you to recover your financial loss. Not only can the proceedings be lengthy, but they are also of a rather complex nature, reason for which a legal support is often of a valuable help. In particular in case the dispute has international implications, as mentioned above.

The Aubert-Hug law firm is at your disposal to provide you with a professional legal advice and support, also by defending your rights in front of courts, where applicable.

Counsel