The Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland (german: Bundesgericht, french: Tribunal fédéral, it, Tribunale federale, rm, ) is the supreme court of the
Swiss Confederation
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
and at the head of the
Swiss judiciary.
The Federal Supreme Court is headquartered in the Federal Courthouse in
Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
in the canton of
Vaud
Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...
. The two social security divisions of the Federal Supreme Court (formerly
Federal Insurance Court
Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to:
Politics
General
*Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies
*Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
, as an organizationally independent unit of the Federal Supreme Court), are located in
Lucerne
Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
. The
Federal Assembly elects 38 justices to the Federal Supreme Court. The current president of the court is
Martha Niquille
Martha Niquille-Eberle, (born 1954), is a Swiss jurist and judge at the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland in Lausanne. In 2021, and after ninety seven male presidents, she assumed she as its president as the first woman. She is a member of the ...
.
Functions
The Federal Supreme Court is the final arbiter on disputes in the field of civil law (citizens-citizens), the public arena (citizen-state), as well as in disputes between cantons or between cantons and the Confederation. The Supreme Court's decisions in the field of human rights violations can be appealed to the
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...
in
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
.
As a state agency, the Federal Supreme Court examines the uniform application of federal law by the cantonal and federal courts of lower instance. It protects the rights that citizens have under the Federal Constitution. In the proceedings, the Federal Supreme Court examines the application of the law but does not examine the facts established by the lower courts, unless they are manifestly arbitrary.
When an appeal is filed, the Federal Supreme Court examines whether the law was correctly applied in the contested decision and thus ensures the uniform application of federal law throughout the country. Its decisions contribute to the development of the law and to its adaptation to new circumstances. The other courts and the administrative authorities use the decisions of the Federal Supreme Court as a reference and adopt their principles. Procedures before the Federal Supreme Court take place in writing. There are no court hearings with plaintiffs and defendants giving testimony and lawyers pleading their cases. The Federal Supreme Court bases its decisions on facts as they are established by the lower instances and described in the records of the previous proceedings. If the Federal Supreme Court concludes that a lower court has decided incorrectly, it overturns the contested decision and if necessary sends it back to the previous instance for a new decision. In addition to its work as the highest judicial authority, the Federal Supreme Court exercises administrative supervision over the Federal Criminal Court, the Federal Administrative Court and the Federal Patent Court.
According to the
Constitution of Switzerland
The Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation (SR 10; german: Bundesverfassung der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft (BV); french: Constitution fédérale de la Confédération suisse (Cst.); it, Costituzione federale della Confederaz ...
, the court has jurisdiction over violations of:
*federal law;
*public
international law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
;
*
inter-cantonal law;
*cantonal constitutional rights;
*autonomy of municipalities, and other guarantees granted by the cantons to public corporate bodies; and
*federal and cantonal provisions concerning political rights.
Because of an emphasis on
direct democracy
Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the Election#Electorate, electorate decides on policy initiatives without legislator, elected representatives as proxies. This differs from the majority of currently establishe ...
through
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
, the Constitution precludes the Federal Supreme Court from reviewing acts of the
Federal Parliament
The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the governor-gen ...
, unless such review is specifically provided for by statute.
Decisions of
arbitral tribunal
An arbitral tribunal or arbitration tribunal, also arbitration commission, arbitration committee or arbitration council is a panel of unbiased adjudicators which is convened and sits to resolve a dispute by way of arbitration. The tribunal may co ...
s constituted under Swiss law, such as the
Court of Arbitration for Sport
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS; french: Tribunal arbitral du sport, ''TAS'') is an international body established in 1984 to settle disputes related to sport through arbitration. Its headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland and its co ...
, can be appealed to the Federal Supreme Court, although judicial review is limited to a very narrow set of questions of law in such cases.
Organisation
The supervisory bodies are the Court Assembly, the Administrative Commission and the Conference of Presidents. The Court Assembly consists of all ordinary justices and is mainly responsible for the Court's internal organisation. It designates the divisions, appoints their presidents and issues the procedural rules for the Court. The Administrative Commission is responsible for managing the Court's administration. It is composed of the President of the Federal Supreme Court, the Vice-President and one other justice. The Conference of Presidents consists of the presidents of the various divisions and is responsible for the coordination of judicial decision-making among the divisions. The President of the Federal Supreme Court acts in an advisory capacity. The Secretary-General participates in meetings held by the Court Assembly, the Administrative Commission and the Conference of Presidents in an advisory capacity. The first woman to be elected into the Federal Supreme Court was
Margrith Bigler-Eggenberger
Margrith Bigler-Eggenberger (14 March 1933 – 5 September 2022) was a Swiss jurist, university lecturer, judge and a member of the Social Democratic Party (SP). She was elected the first female judge of the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland. ...
in 1972 one year after women were permitted to participate in elections on a federal level.
Federal justices
A total of 38 justices sit on the bench of the Federal Supreme Court. Currently 14 women and 24 men serve as federal justices. Of the federal justices currently serving on the bench, three have Italian, 12 French and 23 German as their native language. The justices are forbidden from engaging in any gainful occupation outside of their work as federal justices. The federal justices have the status of government officials.
The federal justices are proposed by the Judicial Committee and elected by the United Federal Assembly (National Council and Council of States) for a term of office of six years. They can be re-elected an unlimited number of times. There is, however, an upper age limit of 68. Anyone who has the right to vote at the federal level may be elected a federal justice; the law does not prescribe any legal training. In practice, however, only proven jurists from the judiciary, practicing legal profession, academia or the public sector are elected.
Deputy federal justices
The Federal Supreme Court numbers 19 deputy justices, who are also elected by the Federal Assembly. Of the deputy justices currently sitting on the bench, three have Italian, five French and 11 German as their native language. Nine of the deputy justices are women. The deputy federal justices serve in a part-time capacity, otherwise they are professors, practicing lawyers or cantonal judges. As a general rule, they serve as replacements for justices who have recused themselves or have taken ill, or when the Court's docket has become overly full. In the proceedings on which they sit they have the same rights and obligations as the ordinary federal justices.
Court clerks
The court clerks are the judicial staff of the justices. Previously their primary task was to draft the written judgements after the decisions had been rendered in court. Due to the increasing case load of the Court, the court clerks are now also tasked with drafting the draft ruling in many cases. They also are involved in an advisory capacity in the preparatory stages of proceedings and during deliberations. They draft the final text of rulings based on the remarks made by the members of the division. Currently 132 court clerks serve on the Federal Supreme Court, approximately one third of whom are women.
Divisions
The 38 federal justices are elected by the United Federal Assembly. The Federal Supreme Court is composed of seven divisions, with five or six justices each. The tasks of the divisions differ according to the legal domains they cover (public law, private law, criminal law).
;First Public Law Division
Guarantee of ownership, national and regional spatial planning and construction law, environmental protection, political rights, international judicial cooperation in criminal matters, road traffic (including the revocation of driving licences), citizenship, guarantees of due process. In criminal proceedings: appeals against interlocutory rulings.
Division president: Lorenz Kneubühler,
Judges: Monique Jametti, Stephan Haag, Thomas Müller, Laurent Merz, François Chaix
;Second Public Law Division
Rights of foreigners, taxes and duties, public commercial law (e.g. state liability, subsidies, radio and television), fundamental rights such as freedom of religion and conscience, freedom of language and economic freedom.
Division president: Florence Aubry Girardin
Judges: Yves Donzallaz, Stephan Hartmann, Marianne Ryter, Julia Hänni, Michael Beusch
;First Civil Law Division
Code of Obligations (law of obligations), insurance contracts, intellectual property rights, competition law and international arbitration.
Division president: Fabienne Hohl
Judges: Martha Niquille, Christina Kiss,
Yves Rüedi
Yves Rüedi (; born 30 September 1976) is a Judge of the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland.
Professional career Education
Rüedi earned a Master of Laws degree in 2002 and a Doctor of Law degree in 2009 from the University of St. Gallen.
...
, Marie-Chantal May Canellas
;Second Civil Law Division
Civil Code (law of persons, family law, law of succession and property law), proceedings concerning debt recovery and bankruptcy.
Division president: Christian Herrmann
Judges: Elisabeth Escher, Luca Marazzi, Nicolas von Werdt, Felix Schöbi, Grégory Bovey
;Criminal Law Division
Criminal matters arising from substantive criminal law (including the execution of penalties and measures) and from the Code of Criminal Procedure (except appeals against interlocutory rulings in criminal proceedings).
Division president: Christian Denys
Judges: Laura Jacquemoud-Rossari, Giuseppe Muschietti, Beatrice van de Graaf, Sonja Koch
;First Social Law Division
Disability insurance, accident insurance, unemployment insurance, cantonal social insurance, family allowances, social assistance, military insurance and civil service law.
Division president: Martin Wirthlin (Präsident),
Judges: Alexia Heine, Daniela Viscione, Bernard Abrecht, Marcel Maillard
;Second Social Law Division
Old-age and survivors’ insurance, disability insurance, loss-of-income payments, supplementary benefits, health insurance and occupational pensions.
Division president: Francesco Parrino
Judges:
Thomas Stadelmann, Lucrezia Glanzmann, Margit Moser-Szeless
See also
*
Federal courts of Switzerland
The federal judiciary of Switzerland consists of the Federal Supreme Court, in Lausanne, the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, the Federal Patent Court, in St. Gallen and the Federal Administrative Court, in St. Gallen. These courts ar ...
**
Federal Criminal Court of Switzerland
french: Tribunal pénal féderal it, Tribunale penale federale rm, Tribunal penal federal
, image = Bundesstrafgericht logo.svg
, imagesize =
, caption =
, motto =
, established =
, country = ...
**
Federal Administrative Court
**
Federal Patent Court
Notes and references
*
External links
*
Page on the website of the City of Lausanne
{{Coord, 46, 31, 10, N, 6, 38, 39, E, region:CH-VD_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
Buildings and structures in Lausanne
Neoclassical architecture in Switzerland
1849 establishments in Switzerland
Courts and tribunals established in 1849