Zurich
Fortior’s Zurich office is run by Fortior Law (Switzerland) S.A., a Swiss-authorised law firm.
The Zurich office works within the broader network of Fortior’s offices, and specialises in commercial and investment arbitration, litigation before the Commercial Court in Zurich and other state courts in German-speaking Switzerland, as well as criminal proceedings involving white-collar crime, fraud, insolvency, foreign requests for mutual judicial assistance and other matters. We are prepared to act as co-counsel on local Swiss issues arising in relation to international arbitration proceedings or foreign court proceedings managed by other law firms, for example where clients require urgent interim relief such as freezing orders or blocking injunctions, urgent measures by the prosecution authorities, recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments or arbitral awards in Switzerland, Swiss Federal Tribunal appeals in relation to international arbitration proceedings seated in Switzerland.
Fortior’s Zurich office is led by Leonid Shmatenko. Leonid is a German national of Ukrainian origin. He is admitted to practice law in Switzerland and Germany. He has extensive experience advising corporations, sovereign states, private equity and venture capital funds, and high-net-worth individuals on resolving complex disputes. Leonid has a notable track record in international disputes, including representing European energy companies in high-value gas pricing disputes and advising states and investors in investor-State arbitrations, having previously worked in a leading Swiss law firm specialising in investor-state arbitration. He also has significant experience in sports arbitrations, currently serving as a judge of the Swiss Sports Tribunal. Leonid is recognised in multiple rankings, including the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers’ Award in 2023 in the category of "Legal Department: Innovation in Operational Efficiency", Lexology Index (formerly Who’s Who Legal) Future Leaders in Arbitration and the Legal 500.
Our Zurich team speaks English, French, German, Ukrainian and Russian. In cooperation with our Geneva office, we also work on matters requiring fluency in Arabic.
