Christophe de Kalbermatten

HISTORY

Python was founded in Geneva in 1981. The first offices were set up at Rue François-Bellot where more than half of the facilities are still located. In order to handle a rapidly growing volume of activity, additional premises became necessary and were found only a few blocks away, in the historic and elegant area of the "Quartier de l'Eglise russe" near the Old Town of Geneva.

DEVELOPMENT

Realising the growing importance of the economic area around Lake Geneva, Python opened branches in Lausanne/Pully (Canton of Vaud) as well as in Sion (Canton of Valais). The firm also has an office in Switzerland's bilingual capital of Berne (seat of most of the Federal authorities) as well as a representative office in Zug.

 

In 1998, Python accentuated its already close links to Asia by opening an office in Tokyo as the first Swiss law firm to be accredited by the Tokyo Bar. In order to have a link to the EU, a liaison office was also established in Brussels.

In 2016, Python became the first ever Swiss law firm to launch an office in Tehran, its eighth after those in Switzerland, Belgium and Japan, all of which opened in direct response to client needs.

Effective July 1 2016, Python & Peter became Python, reflecting the evolution of the firm's identity in the marketplace, already commonly referred to as "Python".

PROFILE AND PHILOSOPHY

Python is one of the major Swiss firms in terms of size and resources, having the know-how and facilities to enable it to play a significant role on the Swiss and international scene.

High quality, efficiency, responsiveness and flexibility are our guiding principles. Clients also appreciate our independence, creativity and entrepreneurship.

Within this professional framework, a personal and confidential relationship with our clients remains one of our highest priorities.

We strive to be at the forefront of modernity and efficiency. It is in this regard significant that the firm was instrumental in launching and developing the first Swiss legal database which has since evolved into an autonomous company under the name of Swisslex.

ATTORNEYS

Our firm has over 80 multilingual Swiss and foreign qualified attorneys. All highly qualified, they routinely advise clients in 11 languages: English, Farsi (or Persian), French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish and Russian. Many of them have gained experience in another professional environment and/or have worked abroad. Their theoretical backgrounds and practical approaches make them particularly suited for corporate and private clients seeking specific legal advice on matters where cross-border and interdisciplinary expertise are required.

SERVICES

The firm offers services in all areas of the law, with particular emphasis on business law. The firm's goal is to offer nationwide and global legal services of high quality to both private and institutional clients in Switzerland and abroad.

At the same time, the firm's fields of expertise are (in alphabetical order):

Arbitration

Banking and Finance

Commercial Contracts

Corporate and M&A

Intellectual Property, IT and Telecom

International Legal Assistance and Criminal Law

Litigation and Insolvency

Private Clients

Real Estate and Construction

Tax

For larger cases, Python is able to set up teams of partners, senior associates and other lawyers elaborating the best suitable solution for our clients. This is increasingly important in cross-border matters, and larger cases in particular in international arbitration cases, tax, mutual assistance cases as well as M&A transactions.

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Location: Geneva Title: Attorney at law and notary public, partner Admitted: 1992 Valais, 1993 Zurich, Switzerland; 1996 New York, 1996 Ohio, USA; 1999 Geneva, Switzerland  Education: Geneva University (J.D. 1989); Heidelberg University (LL.M. 1991); New York University (M.C.J. 1995)

Christophe de Kalbermatten practices corporate law, with a primary focus on mergers and acquisitions, venture capital, banking, business transactions and international corporate litigation.

He worked as a corporate attorney in Sion and Zurich for three years prior to joining Jones Day Reavis & Pogue, one of the world’s leading law firms with over 1’600 lawyers.  

Christophe worked in the Jones Day's Cleveland Office from 1995 through 1998 and then in the Jones Day’ Geneva Office from October 1998 through June 2001.
In July 2001, Christophe joined Python & Peter, a Swiss law firm of over 65 lawyers with offices in several locations in Switzerland. Christophe advised clients during the last 15 years on a large number of M&A transactions, involving both public mergers and private acquisitions.

Christophe was the leading lawyer on major transactions such as the sale of a fine chemical multinational group, the spin-off of a division of a fortune 500 company, the reorganization of a major ski resort, the acquisition of an outplacement services group, the restructuring of a five star hotel ownership, several acquisitions in the watch making industry, venture capital financing rounds and the set up of new operations in Switzerland for traders, financial institutions and foreign listed companies. 

Christophe has organized investment funds under the laws of Switzerland and offshore jurisdictions, documented an asset securitization program for a large bank, implemented international stock ownership plans for multinational companies, filed requests for a foreign bank and a larger broker to obtain a license in Switzerland and advised a major hotel chain in its tax optimization program using Swiss branches and affiliates.

Christophe is an official receiver and liquidator of financial institutions and intermediaries under mandate of the Swiss Federal Banking Commission.
Christophe drafted all kinds of business contracts, including various building, agency and sale contracts for a company selling yachts, a complex building loan agreement for a large shopping mall, technology-related agreements for several telecom, medical devices, sportswear apparel and internet companies and bidding procedures and agreements for an international project funded by the Swiss Department of Economy.  

Christophe also advised local authorities with respect to the contractual management of some major pieces of its real estate as well as with respect to outsourcing and public private partnerships. Christophe represented major European companies before the Swiss competition authorities, advising for example on the strategy with respect to a major price fixing conspiracy and filing requirements with respect to the acquisition of indirect control of a large multinational company.

Christophe is permanent advisor or member of the board of directors of significant Swiss and international companies, including companies active in the field of watch making, medical devices, post and packaging services, software development and sport resorts.

Christophe also litigated cases while in Geneva, Sion and Zurich, representing clients with respect to contracts, real estate, unfair competition and corporate disputes up to the Swiss Supreme Court.

Christophe is the co-author of the Edition "Suisse" from Editions Francis Lefevre and the author of articles in the field of corporate and real estate law. Christophe is admitted as a civil law notary public in Sion and is a member of the Swiss Notary Public Association and the American and New York State Bar Association.
He is fluent in French, English and German. 

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