Ruth Bloch-Riemer

Practice Areas

Ruth Bloch-Riemer’s practice focuses on domestic and international tax law as well as pensions and social security law.

Ruth regularly advises Swiss and foreign high net worth individuals, families, entrepreneurs and family offices in all taxation and pension and social security matters. She is a trusted advisor to her clients and works on a strategic level to develop and accompany their structural goals as well as the implementation. She is highly experienced in leading project teams in transition phases of businesses, personal circumstances or between generations. Within this framework, she particularly advises clients with regard to wealth and succession planning, residence planning, the structuring of their business and entrepreneurial engagements as well as their charitable commitment. She also assists her clients in the context of the taxation of art. Besides the coordination of tax and private wealth matters, Ruth assists both HNWI and professionals on how to structure their professional activities from a pension and social security perspective to identify planning possibilities and implement solutions.

Ruth leads Bär & Karrer's pensions and social security practice. She has gained significant experience in a variety of business-related pension and social security areas such as pension questions within the context of M&A transactions and business transfers, complex cross-border social security coordination and the handling of pensions, social security and tax aspects around compensation and benefits packages for C-levels and board members. As a former member of the steering committee of the International Pension and Employee Benefits Lawyers Association (IPEBLA), Ruth has actively been involved in exchanging and further developing industry know how also on a cross-border level for several years.

In her areas of practice, Ruth Bloch-Riemer supports clients both in the context of compliance work and non-contentious procedures where she has gained particular experience in complex compensation-related investigations and larger disclosure projects. Furthermore, she also supports clients in the context of litigation vis-à-vis domestic administrative and judicial authorities.

Ruth Bloch-Riemer regularly publishes, lectures and speaks at domestic and international conferences on tax, pensions and social security matters. She has, i.a., recently co-authored the relevant comprehensive commentaries on inheritance and gift tax law and on pensions law and serves as examination expert within the certified tax expert diploma process. Furthermore, Ruth enjoys to contributing her expertise and experience to charitable foundations where she has been serving as board member for many years and accompanying significant restructuring projects.

Ruth Bloch-Riemer is newly ranked in Chambers Global 2025 as well as in Chambers Europe Guide 2025 and is listed in Band 3 in Chambers High Net Worth (HNW) 2025. She is also acknowledged by Legal 500 2024 as a 'Next Generation Partner.' Additionally, she has been awarded Gold as 'Lawyer of the Year, Switzerland' at the IFC Awards 2023 and received the Euromoney Legal Media Group's Rising Star Award in 2019.

Career

Partner at Bär & Karrer (since 2019)

Certified Tax Expert (2014)

University of Berne: Dr. iur. (2012)

Associate at Bär & Karrer (2011-2018)

Admitted to the Zurich Bar (2010)

Trainee at a Swiss law firm (2008-2009)

University of Zurich: lic. iur. (2006)

Professional Memberships

The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law (TIAETL)

Member of the Steering Commitee of IPEBLA

Member of the International Fiscal Association Swiss Branch (IFA Switzerland)

Member of the International Pension & Employee Benefits Lawyers Association (IPEBLA) and of its Executive Compensation Committee

STEP Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners

Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce

Swiss Bar Association (SAV/FSA)

Zurich Bar Association (ZAV)

Languages Spoken

English

French

German

Italian