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Schellenberg Wittmer is foremost amongst its peers when it comes to assisting clients in cross-border investments and international arbitration. With years of Swiss expertise and a team of lawyers from various jurisdictions, clients benefit from tailored advice to their needs.

“What sets us apart from other global firms with bigger arbitration practices is that we have both common law and civil law lawyers,” explains Julie Raneda, Partner at Schellenberg Wittmer. “We have a team of lawyers coming from different jurisdictions but with a distinct approach towards international arbitration given our Swiss/civil-law background. We offer more tailored advice and a more reasonable approach to cases and the way we handle international arbitration,” she adds.

Schellenberg Wittmer is amongst the top law firms in Switzerland. Its Singapore office provides services from focused advice to project management. The firm has over 150 lawyers in Switzerland and offers first-tier representation in international arbitrations seated around the globe. Schellenberg Wittmer is ranked first-tier in Chambers, Legal 500, and Who’s Who Legal, and is regularly featured in the GAR30 as one of the thirty leading arbitration practices worldwide.

Raneda, for instance, is qualified in Switzerland, admitted as a foreign lawyer in Singapore and has worked in Geneva, Zurich and London before moving to Singapore. She has acted in cases
under the rules of the ICC, SIAC, Swiss Chambers and VIAC, amongst others. She represented Algerian state-owned energy company Sonatrach before the Swiss Federal Tribunal in relation
to an ongoing UNCITRAL arbitration against a subsidiary of a Paris-based oil company.

In 2017, Raneda was part of a team that represented Russia before the Swiss Federal Tribunal in proceedings relating to a US$13b Geneva-seated Energy Charter Treaty arbitration over the collapse of the Yukos oil company, one of the “second wave” of cases that arose from the saga.

Christopher Boog, Managing Partner of Schellenberg Wittmer Singapore and vice-chair of Schellenberg Wittmer’s international arbitration practice group, moved to Singapore in 2014 to set up the firm’s arbitration practice. He has been counsel and arbitrator in over 100 complex arbitrations seated in common and civil law jurisdictions under many different arbitration rules.

He is currently representing an international construction consortium in several parallel multibillion-dollar arbitrations in one of the world’s largest infra-structure projects and is acting for a contractor in a dispute regarding a major infrastructure project in Kazakhstan.

Boog notes what sets the firm apart is its in-depth experience in international arbitration matters, particularly in cross-border and multicultural settings. “Our clients appreciate the combination of an international team with written and oral advocacy skills from a large international firm in London or New York, but with a down-to-earth, maybe slightly more civil law-focused approach to handling, staffing and conducting arbitrations. Simply put, we offer Swiss quality legal services on an international scale,” he said.

“We are the only Swiss law firm with an office in Singapore, and the only major Swiss firm in Asia.”

Schellenberg Wittmer offers a wide range of services both for outbound and inbound clients. Its clients are market leaders in a wide range of sectors including financial services, mergers &
acquisitions, life sciences, technology, telecommunication, commodities, construction, manufacturing and energy.

“We offer both inbound and outbound services. We advise Asian clients on Swiss law. We assist them in doing business in Switzerland and in all other matters, including international arbitration. We get requests for very different issues such as banking and real estate,” Raneda explains.

“We also advise Swiss clients seeking to do business in Singapore and in Asia. We help them with their investments and projects, and we coordinate between them and local lawyers.” For outbound investments into Switzerland, the firm advises Asian clients on investments and all legal, tax and regulatory aspects of doing business in Switzerland, focusing on key areas including financial services, real estate, information technology, construction and major projects, life sciences, infrastructure and luxury brands.

For more information visit: https://www.swlegal.ch/en/singapore/ or call (65) 6580 2240.