Can a Swiss lawyer be paid purely on a contingency basis?

No. Pure contingency fees (pactum de quota litis) are not permitted under the BGFA. The only outcome-based arrangement available is a base fee with a capped success element (pactum de palmario), where the base fee alone covers reasonable cost and profit.

How is hourly time recorded and billed?

Time is recorded in six-minute increments (0.1 hour), with detailed statements issued monthly and payment due within 30 days unless otherwise agreed. Hourly rates apply only to work beyond an agreed scope, or to matters where scope genuinely cannot be defined in advance.

Are unused retainer amounts refunded on termination?

Yes. Either party may end an engagement on notice, subject to professional obligations; on termination, unused retainer amounts are refunded and files are transferred as directed.

Are the prices inclusive of VAT?

Prices are quoted in CHF, net and exclusive of Swiss MWST (VAT) where applicable. The final fee is set in a written engagement letter before work begins.

Engagement Models

Value-based fee arrangements scoped to each matter, with hourly rates kept as the anchor only beyond the agreed scope.

Prices and How They Map

Each service leads with a value-based fee arrangement matched to the work, with hourly rates kept as a secondary anchor for anything beyond the agreed scope. The per-service starting (“from”) figures are published in the Services section; the models further below explain how each arrangement is structured. Prices are quoted in CHF, net and exclusive of Swiss MWST (VAT) where applicable.

Life Sciences Regulatory Counsel: Monthly subscription
MDR / IVDR Compliance: Subscription + fixed-fee modules
Swiss Authorized Representative (CH-REP): Fixed-fee mandate structuring
Clinical Trial Contracting: Framework subscription + per-CTA fixed fee
Market Access & Reimbursement (SL / BAG): Fixed fee per listing
Pharmacovigilance & Drug Safety: Subscription + fixed-fee modules
Product Liability (PrHG): Hourly advisory; capped defence retainer
Data-Protection Advisor & Operations: Monthly subscription
Swiss Data-Protection Representative (Art. 14 DSG): Annual fee, tiered by scale
EU AI Act Compliance: Subscription + fixed-fee modules
Cyber & Digital Resilience (NIS2 / DORA / CRA): Fixed-fee modules + subscription
ICT Commercial Contracting: Monthly subscription
Health-Data & Research-Data Law (HFG + DSG): Subscription + fixed-fee modules
Digital Health Compliance: Monthly subscription
Pharma & MedTech Transactions: Phased fixed fee, with an optional collar
International Arbitration: Phased fixed fees with per-phase caps
Pharma Compliance & Investigations: Fixed scoping fee, then capped phases
Fractional Counsel: Days-per-month retainer
Success-Based Components
May supplement any engagement where Swiss professional rules permit.

Fixed Fee (Pauschalhonorar)

A predetermined fee for a scoped deliverable. The price is set before work begins, so cost is known at the outset and efficiency stays with the firm.

Where It Fits
Regulatory filings, contract drafting and review, due diligence, and other work with a clearly bounded deliverable.
Scope Discipline
The fixed fee covers the deliverable defined in the engagement letter. Material additions are scoped and priced separately before they proceed.

Retainer / Subscription

The lead arrangement for ongoing mandates: a defined monthly scope billed at a flat rate, or a days-per-month commitment for embedded, fractional work.

Monthly Subscription
A flat monthly fee for a defined scope of recurring advisory, regulatory, and contracting work, with priority access and budget predictability across the term.
Days-per-Month Retainer
Embedded legal leadership on a part-time basis, without a full-time hire. Typical arrangements range from 2 to 8 days per month. Learn more about fractional counsel.
Scope & Reporting
The engagement letter specifies covered services. Periodic statements record the work handled. Litigation and disputes are scoped under separate terms.
Term
Monthly, quarterly, or annual commitments with renewal options. Either party may end the engagement on notice, subject to professional obligations.

Capped Fee (Kostendach)

A ceiling on total fees where scope is uncertain. Work is tracked against the cap; efficient resolution reduces the total, and fees never exceed the agreed maximum.

Where It Fits
Matters where the deliverable is clear but the effort cannot be fixed in advance, giving cost certainty without over-pricing the downside.
Visibility
Progress against the cap is reported as the matter develops, with notice before the ceiling is approached.

Collared Fee

A floor-and-ceiling band that shares both upside and downside on transactions. Fees settle within an agreed range rather than at a single point.

How It Works
A lower bound and an upper bound frame the fee. A matter that resolves quickly settles toward the floor; a more demanding one settles toward the ceiling, capped at the upper bound.
Where It Fits
Transactions whose intensity is hard to predict at signing, where a fixed fee is too blunt and a pure cap leaves the floor open.

Phased Fixed Fees

A separate fixed fee for each milestone of a transaction or dispute, so cost tracks the work and each phase can be reassessed before the next begins.

Milestone Pricing
Each phase (for example scoping, drafting, negotiation, or a hearing) carries its own fee, fixed or capped, set against a defined deliverable for that stage.
Where It Fits
Transactions and disputes that run over several stages, where committing to the full path at the outset would not serve either side.

A base fee paired with a capped success element, the only outcome-based form Swiss law allows. Pure contingency (pactum de quota litis) is not permitted under the BGFA.

How It Works
A capped success element may supplement the base fee when a favourable outcome is achieved. The base fee must independently cover reasonable costs and profit; the success element cannot be the sole or primary compensation.
Timing
The arrangement is agreed at engagement start or after the matter concludes, not during ongoing representation.
Permitted Form
The only outcome-based arrangement available under Swiss professional rules is a base fee with a capped success element (the pactum de palmario).

Hourly & Day Rates

The secondary anchor, applied to work that falls beyond an agreed scope or to matters where scope genuinely cannot be defined in advance. Rates reflect complexity, expertise, and urgency.

Billing Increments
Time recorded in six-minute increments (0.1 hour); day rates apply to embedded and on-site work.
Monthly Invoicing
Detailed statements issued monthly with task-level descriptions. Payment due within 30 days unless otherwise agreed.
Matter Budgets
Estimates available on request, with notice when time approaches the agreed budget.

Expenses & Disbursements

How third-party costs incurred on a matter are handled, separate from the fee for the firm’s own work.

Third-party costs (filing fees, experts, translations) billed at actual cost without markup
Significant anticipated expenses discussed and approved in advance
Travel billed at standard flat rates when required

Engagement Terms

A written agreement defines scope, fees, and expectations before work begins.

Scope of Representation
The engagement letter specifies the matters covered and, where relevant, matters expressly excluded. New matters require confirmation.
Client Identity
The agreement identifies the client entity or individual. Representation does not extend to affiliates, subsidiaries, or related parties unless expressly stated.
Conflict Check
A conflict check precedes every engagement; where a conflict is identified, the firm declines or, where the rules permit, proposes appropriate safeguards.
Termination
Either party may terminate the engagement upon notice, subject to professional obligations. Upon termination, unused retainer amounts are refunded and files transferred as directed.
Governing Law
Engagements are governed by Swiss law. The attorney-client relationship is subject to the Federal Act on the Free Movement of Lawyers (BGFA), including its professional rules in Art. 12 BGFA.

Common Questions

Can a Swiss lawyer be paid purely on a contingency basis?: No. Pure contingency fees (pactum de quota litis) are not permitted under the BGFA. The only outcome-based arrangement available is a base fee with a capped success element (pactum de palmario), where the base fee alone covers reasonable cost and profit.
How is hourly time recorded and billed?: Time is recorded in six-minute increments (0.1 hour), with detailed statements issued monthly and payment due within 30 days unless otherwise agreed. Hourly rates apply only to work beyond an agreed scope, or to matters where scope genuinely cannot be defined in advance.
Are unused retainer amounts refunded on termination?: Yes. Either party may end an engagement on notice, subject to professional obligations; on termination, unused retainer amounts are refunded and files are transferred as directed.
Are the prices inclusive of VAT?: Prices are quoted in CHF, net and exclusive of Swiss MWST (VAT) where applicable. The final fee is set in a written engagement letter before work begins.

The right arrangement starts with a scoped conversation.

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