Maria Walter Burkhardt

Stefan Brunnschweiler is the managing partner of CMS Switzerland and co-heads the CMS Corporate/M&A Practice Area Group. He was named one of the top 10 lawyers in Switzerland in the edition of “Who is Who” by Bilanz. Stefan Brunnschweiler specialises in international and domestic M&A transactions, venture capital, corporate restructurings, corporate law and general contract matters (e.g. joint ventures, partnerships and shareholders' agreements). He is experienced in a bro...

As Chief Executive Officer, Christian Lyk is responsible for the operational management of KENDRIS and also holds the position of Responsible Officer FATCA. He has extensive experience in regulatory and compliance matters and specialises in providing cross-border financial, tax, estate planning and family office services to ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWIs). Christian Lyk began his career in a law firm before joining one of the Big 4 where he held a managerial position in the field of...

Thomas Meister is a partner in the Tax Team. He is working in the fields of domestic and international corporate tax, including tax optimization, corporate and real estate finance, structured finance, corporate reorganizations, transaction structuring and M&A. Since 2004 he is an adjunct professor for tax law at the University of St. Gall. Born in 1963, Thomas Meister was educated at the Universities of Lausanne and St. Gall (lic. iur. 1989, Dr. iur. 1995), New York University (LL.M. 1998...

Manuel Bigler is a managing associate in the firms’ practice area Intellectual Property (IP). He advises and represents clients in all aspects of IP law with a particular focus on trademark, patent and copyright law. His practice also includes unfair competition, media and advertising law. He regularly advises clients in negotiating IP and technology-related agreements, such as license agreements. Manuel Bigler is further specialized in representing clients in disputes before courts and...

Michael Isler is a partner and member of the management board in the product groups Intellectual Property, Information Technology and Data Protection. He regularly advises in complex outsourcing, technology transfer and platform projects from the conceptual and negotiation phase to dispute settlement. He further enjoys a vast experience in copyright, trademark and patent law. A particular focus of his work is dedicated to the life sciences and health sector. Michael Isler regularly publishes ...

Louise Lutz Sciamanna is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Wealth Management Practice. Louise Lutz, who practices law in Zürich, Switzerland, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Louise Lutz is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Urs P. Gnos heads the Transaction Team. His practice focuses on international and domestic mergers & acquisitions, private equity, venture capital and capital market transactions, commercial and corporate law as well as public tender offers and buy-outs. Urs P. Gnos also advises companies with respect to corporate governance matters, stock exchange regulations, corporate reorganizations and restructurings, incl. relocations. Urs P. Gnos is a member of various board of directors, among oth...

Partner & Certified Specialist SBA Construction and Real Estate Law Stefan Gerster is a partner with CMS Zurich since 2001. His practice focuses mainly on real estate law. He is the head of our internal practice group Real Estate & Construction. Among the clients of Stefan Gerster are Swiss and foreign institutional real estate investors, companies with corporate real estate matters and individuals. He provides advice in real estate transactions, including acquisition and financing as...

Jan Ole Luuk is counsel in the Tax Team. He is an indirect tax specialist with a focus on Swiss and EU value added tax (VAT) and related customs and excise matters. He speaks and publishes regularly in the field of indirect taxation. Born in 1971, Jan Ole Luuk was educated at the Free University Berlin (First State Law Exam 1996) and the University of London (LL.M. 1997). He continued his legal education at the Court of Appeal Berlin (Second State Law Exam 2000). He graduated as a Certified T...

Markus Pfenninger is a partner in the Transactions Team. His fields of expertise include capital market transactions, mergers & acquisitions, finance, restructurings, collective investment schemes as well as banking and insurance regulatory matters. He is a member of the International Bar Association’s (IBA) Task Force on the Financial Crisis and a past chair of the IBA’s Subcommittee on Legal Opinions as well as a past co-chair of the IBA’s Banking Law Committee. Born i...