Robin Rathmell
Robin Rathmell
Partner | Kasowitz Benson Torres
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Dispute Resolution or Arbitration
Reputation and Crisis Management
Trusts: Contentious
Office Location
United States
Short Biography
Robin Rathmell, Co-Chair of Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP’s International Disputes team, is a renowned international litigator representing high-net-worth individuals and institutions in litigation involving allegations of fraud, money laundering and other forms of misconduct. Dual-qualified as an English barrister and U.S. lawyer, Rob formulates offensive and defensive global litigation strategies for international clients, including in relation to civil and criminal asset forfeiture, trusts, commercial and insolvency litigation, INTERPOL, and international sanctions regimes. Rob's engagements always span multiple jurisdictions, legal systems and asset-holding structures. He has acted as counsel in cases involving the world’s key offshore financial centers, as well as Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Americas. In addition to his regular interface with U.S. regulatory and intelligence agencies, Rob has extensive experience coordinating legal strategies in matters involving actions brought by non-U.S. authorities, requiring sensitive negotiations with government agencies across multiple jurisdictions.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
HaSalon in Tel Aviv
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Follow Mark Twain’s advice: "If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything."
What was your first job?
Gardening
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Making progress on sanctions remediation as geopolitical trends shift.
Robert Desax
Robert Desax
Partner | Walder Wyss
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Private Banking
Trusts: Planning
Tax Advisory
Office Location
Switzerland
Short Biography
Robert Desax works in the fields of national and international taxation. He represents clients in controversial tax matters and assists private clients regarding the tax aspects of estate and wealth planning. He regularly advises on cross-border implications of international taxation, especially on the application of double tax treaties, on issues in connection with the refund of Swiss withholding taxes in international structures, on the Swiss tax treatment of trusts as well as on the redomiciliation of individuals and businesses to Switzerland. In addition, he also routinely advises and represents clients on corporate tax matters. Robert Desax is a frequent speaker on tax matters and is a regular author of contributions for tax publications.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
What was your first job?
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Richard Wakeham
Richard Wakeham
Group Head of Commercial | ZEDRA
JURISDICTION
Jersey, Guernsey, England and Wales, Isle of Man, Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, United States, Cayman Islands, Curacao, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Poland, India, Malta, Switzerland
TOP SPECIALISMS
Family Governance and Business
Fiduciary
Trusts & Trusteeship
Office Location
United Kingdom
Short Biography
Richard leads the Group’s business and client development activities focussing on client retention/satisfaction and intermediary partnerships. He also leads the Group's Marketing team.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
What was your first job?
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Philippe Pulfer
Philippe Pulfer
Partner | Walder Wyss
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Charitable Planning and Philanthropy
Estates: Contentious
Estates: Planning
Office Location
Switzerland
Short Biography
Philippe Pulfer is co-head of his firm’s Private Client practice. He is widely recognised as one of Switzerland’s leading private client lawyers and constantly top ranked by all major professional directories. He is, according to Chambers HNW, ‘the go-to person in Switzerland’ in his area of practice and has been described by Legal 500 as 'one of the most knowledgeable trust and private client practitioners in Switzerland'. He has been included in the Private Client Global Elite since its inception. Philippe specialises in wealth structuring and estate planning with an international focus and acts in complex, mostly multi-jurisdictional, succession and trust disputes. He advises charities and charity donors in all areas of philanthropy. Philippe is a member of STEP and The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law as well as an International Fellow of the American College of Estate and Trust Counsel (ACTEC).
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
Private member's club rarely disappoint.
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Something equivalent to "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life".
What was your first job?
Not really a job, but as a teenager I sold programmes at gala concerts organised by a charitable foundation. I am now a board member of this foundation.
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
Belle du Seigneur by Albert Cohen.
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Whereas the contentious side of my practice continues to grow, I would expect that the predicted changes in the UK res non-dom regime will require an intense activity on the planning side.
Patricia Guerra
Patricia Guerra
Partner | MLL Legal
JURISDICTION
Switzerland
TOP SPECIALISMS
Charitable Planning and Philanthropy
Estates: Planning
Relocation and Cross-Border Advisory
Office Location
Switzerland
Short Biography
Patricia Guerra is the head of the Private Client Team in Zurich and of the Latin American Desk of MLL Legal. She is the trusted adviser of private individuals and families in connection with their personal matters, their assets, philanthropic endeavors and family governance. Patricia regularly deals with complex cross-border issues and leads and coordinates teams across jurisdictions. She is fluent in English, Spanish, German and French and has command of Italian and Portuguese. Patricia supports several charitable projects pro bono, especially in the area of education of underprivileged women and is member of the board of several Swiss charitable foundations, including the umbrella foundation of MLL Legal. Patricia is also the member of the board of a Swiss private bank and the honorary consul of Ecuador in Zurich.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
Depends on the client, the colleague and the mood.
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Listen carefully and generously
What was your first job?
Tour guide
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
Now "The Biology of Belief" of Bruce H. Lipton PhD
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
The increased use of AI will re-dimension our practices and law firms will need to follow to remain relevant.
Olivier Sigg
Olivier Sigg
Partner | Walder Wyss
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Employment
Estates: Planning
Probate
Office Location
Switzerland
Short Biography
Olivier Sigg is a partner in the Private Clients team as well as an experienced employment lawyer. He heads the Geneva office of Walder Wyss. Olivier Sigg’s private client practice includes various estate-planning techniques. In particular, as a TEP expert, he specialises in trusts, foundations, last wills and testaments. He provides advice to international high-net-worth individuals on estate planning, asset protection, relocation and philanthropy (in particular, advice to international charities). His private client practice involves international succession litigation and trust disputes.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
Roka Mayfair
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Attention to detail is critical. Small mistakes can have significant consequences in legal documents or arguments.
What was your first job?
Shop assistant
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
1984
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
More AI
Nicolas Merlino
Nicolas Merlino
Attorney | Poncet Turrettini
JURISDICTION
Switzerland
TOP SPECIALISMS
Estates: Planning
Relocation and Cross-Border Advisory
Tax Advisory
Office Location
Switzerland
Short Biography
Nicolas Merlino is a Swiss-qualified lawyer and a Swiss-certified tax expert with degrees in Law as well as in Business Administration and Finance and with work experience in finance (1988-1992) in both New York and Geneva, and since 1993 as a lawyer in Geneva. As a senior tax law partner at Poncet Turrettini, a Geneva law firm, and drawing on his multicultural background, Nicolas advises families with a cross-border outlook on a wide range of issues: personal and corporate tax, estate planning and asset structuring such as through trusts, investment funds, companies and foundations. In addition to his private client focus, Nicolas has extensive knowledge and experience of the taxation of business transactions and structuring, particularly with financial instruments, through his experience in finance before becoming a lawyer. A long-time university lecturer, Nicolas continues to be a frequent speaker at conferences and is the author of numerous tax publications.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
Roberto
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Less is more
What was your first job?
Private Banker
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World (Peter Frankopan)
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Increased cross-border mobility
Natalie Peter
Natalie Peter
Partner | Blum & Grob Attorneys at Law Ltd.
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Estates: Planning
Trusts: Planning
Tax Advisory
Office Location
Switzerland
Short Biography
Natalie Peter heads the private clients practice and tax practice of Blum&Grob. She has extensive experience in advising clients and their families typically on their cross-border matters, including estate and tax planning; immigration to/emigration from Switzerland; and analysing and setting up tax-efficient structures. She has patricularly extensice knowledge in matters relating to the taxation of trusts and foundations as well as the setting-up of tax-exempt charitable organisations.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
Luca2 in Zurich
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Be patient and keep pursuing your goals even if it takes longer than expected. It might take a while before you are recognised as being an experienced practitioner.
What was your first job?
STG - Coopers & Lybrand
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
Damascus Nights by Rafik Schami
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Artificial intelligence will gain importance.
Michael Fischer
Michael Fischer
Partner | Fischer Ramp Buchmann
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Relocation and Cross-Border Advisory
Trusts: Planning
Tax Advisory
Office Location
Schweiz, Switzerland
Short Biography
Michael advises private clients on their domestic and international estate, tax, social security and succession planning as well as on philanthropic projects and governance related questions. He has considerable expertise in dealing with tax authorities and advising foreign lawyers, and is a recognised expert on the taxation of trusts and similar structures. Further, he acts on behalf of corporations, in particular family held companies and family offices, in domestic and cross-border matters.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Take the time to be brief.
What was your first job?
Pushing paper in a bank. At 16 during summer break.
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?
Maud Udry-Alhanko
Maud Udry-Alhanko
Partner | MLL Legal
JURISDICTION
TOP SPECIALISMS
Estates: Planning
Family and Matrimonial
Relocation and Cross-Border Advisory
Office Location
Geneva, Switzerland
Short Biography
As a certified Specialist of Family law, Maud has considerable experience in this field with an emphasis on divorce and estate issues, most often with a very strong international component. Maud advises clients in their relocation to Switzerland, including immigration, taxation, real estate, estate planning and complex cross border aspects. She also advises clients in the drafting of their Last Will, Living Will and in relation to mental capacity issues. Being a member of STEP, her practice includes Trusts and advice on Swiss not for profit foundation.
What is your favorite restaurant to take a client or colleague to?
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
What was your first job?
What is the book you recommend to everyone?
What changes do you expect to see in your practice over the next year?