Family Foundations in Switzerland

At a governmental level, the introduction of a Swiss law on trusts is currently being reviewed. One of the arguments is that Switzerland does not provide for a suitable instrument to be used for estate planning or asset protection purposes. Many scholars and practitioners take the view, though, that a common law trust is not a suitable instrument and that therefore it would be more advisable to review the existing instruments, such as the Swiss family foundation or the fiducie (Treuhand), and to amend them accordingly. This article shall shed some light on the Swiss family foundation, on its use and limits and how it could be used de lege ferenda in the future if its legal limits were finally to be released.