Legal counsel for medical practices
Business and legal advice for medical practices
As legal counsel to FMH Services*, Mr. Daniel F. Schütz advises and assists physicians on all contractual, legal and organisational matters relating to the establishment, structuring and management of a medical practice in Geneva and French-speaking Switzerland.
Managing a medical practice requires not only medical expertise but also business decisions. The legal form, contracts, staff, lease arrangements and cooperation with partners form the basis of a practice’s long-term success.
*FMH Services is the independent service organisation for physicians practising in Switzerland and a leading partner for the purchase, establishment, management and transfer of a medical practice or another outpatient medical institution.
Structuring a medical practice legally in Switzerland
The legal structuring of a medical practice in Switzerland is based on three decisions: the legal form (sole proprietorship, limited liability company or corporation), the agreement between the partners in a group practice, and the structuring of relationships with employed or self-employed staff.
Each option has different tax, asset-related and liability implications.
The choice of legal form shapes the entire life of the practice: the physician’s personal asset exposure, the arrangements for partners joining and leaving, transfer and taxation.
Legal counsel for medical
Daniel F. Schütz advises on the following matters:
• Comparative analysis of the legal forms suitable for medical practice (sole proprietorship, limited liability company, corporation, shared practice), taking into account the practitioner’s personal and financial circumstances
• Drafting agreements between partners: governance rules, voting rights, profit distribution, exit clauses, shareholders’ agreements, non-compete provisions, acquisition and transfer of ownership interests
• Drafting the articles of association and assisting with registration in the Commercial Register
• Conversion of a sole proprietorship into a company (limited liability company or corporation), where required by the activity
The advice is strictly limited to legal matters. Tax, insurance and asset-related matters are handled in coordination with the FMH Services partner network.
Contracts and legal responsibilities of the medical practice
A medical practice requires several specific categories of contracts (commercial lease agreements, employment contracts, agreements between partners and mandate agreements with service providers) which structure both its day-to-day operations and the allocation of its legal responsibilities. Clear contractual organisation from the outset safeguards the practice and helps prevent disputes.
The advice covers both preventive contract drafting and assistance in the event of a dispute: challenges to terminations, disagreements between partners and disputes with a landlord.
DFS AVOCATS provides legal services in the following areas:
COMMERCIAL LEASE AGREEMENTS FOR MEDICAL PRACTICES
EMPLOYMENT AND COLLABORATION AGREEMENTS
AGREEMENTS BETWEEN PARTNERS
OBLIGATIONS TOWARDS STAFF
MANDATE AGREEMENTS WITH EXTERNAL SERVICE PROVIDERS
Medical
Daniel F. SCHÜTZ haas been practicing for 20 years and also accepts mandates as director and manager of associations
Make an appointment with DFS Avocats
Are you already established or planning to settle in Geneva or French-speaking Switzerland?
An initial meeting makes it possible to clarify your needs and to inform you whether legal assistance would be appropriate, and in what form.
Our fields of legal expertise
Labour law
Law of commercial companies, foundations and associations
Family and inheritance law
Debt collection and bankruptcy, litigation
Real estate law, leases and rents
Banking and finance law
Foreigners law
Criminal law
