5Gambit Disputes

Managing Partners: Tamir Livschitz and Anja Vogt

Languages:German, English, French, Italian, Hebrew, Russian, Spanish, Arabic

Firm Overview:

Founded by disputes partners of an elite Swiss law firm, 5Gambit Disputes is a disputes and regulatory boutique law firm with a unique footprint in the Zurich legal market. At 5Gambit Disputes we pair many years of elite law firm experience with a bold, tenacious and conflict-free approach in contentious and regulatory matters which gives you and us the critical advantage.

We are proudly independent and court-sharp trial lawyers, who act for plaintiffs and defendants alike. We have a winning track record – and a relentless determination to extend it with every case we take on.

Main Areas of Practice:

Regulatory Litigation:

We are frequently involved in regulatory litigation and represent our clients vis-à-vis the various Swiss federal agencies such as the Financial Markets Supervisory Authority (FINMA), the Federal Department of Finance (FDF), the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) or the Federal Tax Administration (FTA). This spans from the representation of our clients in discussions and efforts to a mutually acceptable resolution of the matters (such as the issuance of licenses, rulings and negative clearances) to acting in appeals filed against regulatory decisions before the Swiss Federal Administrative Court and the Swiss Federal Tribunal.

Representative matters:

• Acting for a Swiss financial institution against FINMA (including in appeals proceedings before the Swiss Federal Administrative Court) concerning the scope of legal aid granted to another governmental agency.
• Acting for an ultra high net worth individual against the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) (including in appeals proceedings before the Swiss Federal Administrative Court) objecting to an unlawful denial of a residential permit.
• Acting for various ultra high net worth individuals against the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) in relation to the de-freezing of assets under various sanctions regimes and the obtaining of licenses or negative clearance confirmations.

Commercial Litigation:

We have particularly deep experience in commercial and corporate litigation, financial disputes, post-M&A disputes, white-collar related disputes, defamation lawsuits and crypto-litigation.

Representative matters:

• Acting for three major US-based crypto venture capital firms on a USD 200 million claim related to their participation in a decentralized exchange.
• Acting for one of the founders in his Swiss state-court litigation against the other founder of a popular decentralized exchange with a value in dispute in the USD triple digit millions.
• Acting for an ultra high net worth individual on her USD 384 million claim against her business partner alleging misappropriation of property/shareholdings.
• Acting for one of the largest steel manufacturer in a EUR 200 million-shareholder dispute

Cross-border litigation, regulatory proceedings and judicial assistance:

Many of the proceedings we represent our clients in have an international element. Our litigators are internationally minded and are admitted to practice in different jurisdictions (common law and civil law alike). Particularly, given our decades-long experience in various types of cross-border disputes, we have considerable knowledge and experience with different kinds of foreign jurisdictions and procedures, which we regularly rely on when devising innovative strategies for the benefit of our clients. We are well versed in using different procedural means alien to Swiss procedural law, but offered by foreign jurisdictions, creating a strategic and evidentiary advantage for our clients. This spans from the strategic use of Mareva injunctions and Anton Piller orders available in common law systems to obtaining broad discovery by means of US procedural tools such as 28 U.S. Code § 1782 (discovery in aid of foreign proceedings).

Also, our litigators have particularly deep experience in cross-border disputes with criminal law components (white-collar, tax evasion). We have been involved in some of the largest cross-border criminal investigations and proceedings involving Swiss-based parties where our litigators have gained unique insight and knowledge into the particularities of foreign governmental agency conduct in global white-collar matters. We are furthermore regularly involved in judicial assistance proceedings (both based on Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties and statutory law) and well acquainted with the means available to help protect our clients’ interest in terms of data transfer to foreign authorities.

Representative matters:

• Teaming up with an elite global law firm in acting for a Swiss-based commodities trader in US discovery conducted in the State of California in aid of a Swiss defamation lawsuit (28 U.S. Code § 1782).
• Acting on a co-counsel basis with a leading BVI law firm in representation of a Eastern European national in obtaining a global freezing order against its Belgian joint venture partner.
• Acting for former shareholders of a Swiss based pharmaceutical company in US Freedom of Information Act proceedings in cooperation with an elite global law firm in aid of a post-M&A dispute litigated before Swiss state-courts against the purchasers of the pharmaceutical company.
• Acting for a global sports federation in criminal proceedings launched in parallel in Switzerland by the Swiss Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and in the US by the US Department of Justice (DOJ).

International Arbitration:

We act as counsel in complex and high-profile commercial arbitrations across a wide range of industries and conducted under many of the major institutional rules or ad-hoc. We have particularly deep experience in financial, commodities, construction (FIDIC) and post-M&A/shareholders arbitration. Moreover, we are regularly instructed in commercial arbitrations in the sports industry in disputes spanning from the organization of large sports events to sponsorship and media rights-related disputes.

Representative matters:

• Acting for an international sports federation on a USD 320 million claim brought by a media rights distributor related to broadcasting rights for a global sports event.
• Acting for an Israeli-based biotech-company on its USD 180 million Swiss Rules arbitration claim brought against a US based services provider.
• Acting for an Israeli based defense contractor on its USD 150 million ICC arbitration-claim brought by its Turkish counterpart based on allegations of the delivery of defect goods.