SWITZERLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Roman Huber, Cristina Ess and Lea Ruckstuhl, Kellerhals Carrard
This is the case for active and passive bribery of a Swiss or foreign public official (Articles 322ter, 322quater and 322septies of the SCC). Article 97, paragraph 1(c) of the SCC provides that the right to prosecute is subject to a time limit of ten years for the offences of: • granting to and acceptance by Swiss public officials of an undue advantage (pursuant to Articles 322quinquies and 322sexies of the SCC); and • active and passive bribery of private indi - viduals (pursuant to Articles 322octies and 322novies of the SCC). If a judgment is issued by a court of first instance before the limitation period expires, the time limit no longer applies (Article 97, paragraph 3 of the SCC). Depending on the sentence imposed, the right to execute a sentence in connection with a bribery offence is subject to a limitation period of five, 15 or 20 years (Article 99, paragraph 1 of the SCC). 3.2 Geographical Reach of Applicable Legislation According to Article 3, paragraph 1 of the SCC, any person who commits an offence in Switzer - land is subject to the SCC. Article 8, paragraph 1 of the SCC clarifies what is meant by the place of commission by stating that an offence is con - sidered to be committed at: • the place where the person concerned com - mits it or unlawfully omits to act; and • the place where the offence has taken effect. If the offence is only partly committed in Swit - zerland, this is sufficient for the Swiss authori - ties to assert jurisdiction. With regard to bribery,
Swiss jurisdiction can arguably be established if the bribe money has been transferred to or from a bank account in Switzerland – regardless of whether the bribing or the bribed person has been to Switzerland. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Swiss legislation has extraterritorial reach under certain condi - tions. Pursuant to Article 6, paragraph 1 of the SCC, a person is subject to the SCC if they com - mit an offence abroad that Switzerland is obliged to prosecute in terms of an international conven - tion, provided that: • the act is also liable to prosecution at the place of commission or no criminal law juris - diction applies at the place of commission; and • the person concerned remains in Switzerland and is not extradited to the foreign country. Furthermore, Article 7, paragraph 1 of the SCC provides that a person who commits an offence abroad – where the requirements of, in particular, Article 6 of the SCC are not fulfilled – is subject to the SCC if: • the offence is also liable to prosecution at the place of commission or the place of commis - sion is not subject to criminal law jurisdiction; • the person concerned is in Switzerland or is extradited to Switzerland owing to the offence; and • under Swiss law, extradition is permitted for the offence, but the person concerned is not being extradited. If the person concerned is not Swiss and if the offence was not committed against a Swiss per - son, Article 7, paragraph 1 of the SCC applies only if the request for extradition was refused for
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