With more than 220 legal professionals (consisting of partners, of counsels, associates, tax advisors and notaries) and more than 400 employees, the firm, which has its origins in 1885, is one of the largest and most traditional law firms in Switzerland, with offices in Basel, Bern, Geneva, Lausanne, Lugano and Zurich, and representative offices in Binningen, Sion, Shanghai and Tokyo. Kellerhals Carrard is active throughout Switzerland, maintaining very strong local roots, whilst advising clients nationally and abroad. We advise and represent companies and entrepreneurs from all industries and economic sectors, public authorities, national and international organisations and private individuals before all judicial and administrative bodies nationally and abroad in practically all areas of the law. Our activities are focused on: • Company and corporate law, external legal department • Litigation, arbitration and insolvency law • M&A and capital markets law • Construction and real estate • Regulatory financial markets law, financial services, collective investments, leasing, insurance • IT/IP, distribution, competition and anti-trust law • International sports law • Tax • Public law • Employment and social insurance law • Commercial criminal law and international mutual assistance / compliance • Family and inheritance law for private customers • Notarial office We focus in particular on the areas of financial services, life sciences, IMT (Information, Technology and Media), sport, energy, real estate/construction as well as on trading and retail.

Founded 1988 the Law Firm will continue to strive in its quest to maintain a dynamic structure and a capacity to offer both individuals and industry top quality consulting and legal services. Our firm combines the flexibility, entrepreneurial spirit and enthusiasm of a smaller firm with the quality and efficiency ordinarily associated with larger firms. Resourcefulness, persistence, independence of mind, enthusiasm and direct partner involvement at every phase of our representations are the hallmarks of our practice. As our clients are often involved in international transactions we are able to provide them with legal assistance in all major countries, in close co-operation with foreign correspondent law firms. Our firm has multilingual capabilities in Italian, French, English and German.

The firm of attorney at law Dr. Giovanni Merlini advises his clients in Italian, German and French and operates throughout Switzerland. The firm is particularly active in the following areas: • Real Estate Law: Contracts for the Sale and the Purchase of Real Estate, Donations of Real Estate, Drafting of Mortgage Certificates, Increase of the Nominal Value, Merger and Conversion of Mortgage Certificates, Drafting of Easements (Servitudes), etc. • Company Law : Formation and Incorporation of Companies, Assignment of Company Shares, Mergers, Amendments to Articles of Association, Trasfer of Registered Offices, Transformation of the Legal Form of a Company, Shareholders' Agreements, etc. • Inheritance Law: Last Wills and Testaments, Inheritance Contracts, Dissolution of Communities of Heirs, Division of Estates, Acting as Executor of Will, etc. • Family Law: Marriage Contracts, etc. • Administrative, Construction and Planning Law • Criminal Law • Notarial Certifications and Legalisations: Authentication of Signatures and Documents, Certified Copies of Documents and Deeds, etc. For some litigation proceedings, the firm of attorney at law Dr. Giovanni Merlini relies on the expertise of the law firm ad metam SA , Ascona.