Bessard & Mercier
Attorneys at LawGenève

Law firm established in Geneva

Private wealth counsel and corporate law
to the measure of a signature.

Bessard & Mercier advises entrepreneurs and established families in the conduct of their affairs, the structuring of their wealth, and the transmission between generations.

Our engagements are built to last, under the seal of unreserved discretion. What is said here stays here. What is signed here holds.

Request a meetingRead the manifesto →
I.
Practice areas

Five areas of expertise held to the same standard.

№ I

Corporate Law & M&A

Acquisitions, disposals, restructurings, shareholders' agreements, corporate governance.

Read more →№ II

Estates & Wealth Planning

Family transmissions, fiduciary structures, trusts, succession agreements, holding companies.

Detailed page →№ III

Tax Structures

Holding companies, foundations, double taxation treaties, international structuring of wealth and participations.

Read more →№ IV

Litigation & Arbitration

Commercial disputes, shareholder litigation, Swiss (Swiss Rules, ICC) and international arbitration proceedings.

Read more →№ V

Private International Law

Conflicts of laws and jurisdictions, cross-border estates, patrimonial and residential mobility, enforcement of foreign judgments.

Read more →
II.
The Firm

Four lawyers. A single conversation with your case.

The firm is deliberately small. Each case is followed from start to finish by the lawyer who received it, supported by a lean team. No client is entrusted to a name they have not met.

Founding Partner

Antoine Bessard

Corporate law

Bar 1998

Founding Partner

Catherine Mercier

Private wealth

Bar 2002

Of Counsel

Élise Hofmann

Private international law

Bar 2008

Senior Associate

Lucas Brassart

Tax

Bar 2014

Full team presentation →
The Firm in figures

A few benchmarks.

28
Years of experience
4
Working languages
17
Jurisdictions in 2025
1
Address, Rue du Rhône

The partners have practised since 1998 and 2002. The firm in its current form was founded in 2024.

IV.
Insights — Latest publications

Notes and analyses recent.

Estates

The Swiss fiduciary versus the Anglo-Saxon trust: convergences and limits

Catherine Mercier · 14 March 2026

Thirty years after ratification of the Hague Convention on the law applicable to trusts, Swiss practice has forged its own path. The Swiss fiduciary occupies a place that is neither a copy of the English trust nor a simple civilian substitute. An examination of the friction points that persist regarding forced heirship, fiscal transparency, and beneficiary protection.

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Estates

International wealth structuring: the pitfalls of multiple residence

Catherine Mercier · 22 November 2025

When a client resides, under various titles, in two or three countries, determining the applicable succession law conditions everything. A brief lexicon of common errors.

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Tax

LPP 21 Reform: implications for business executives

Lucas Brassart · 8 December 2025

Beyond the technical revision, the LPP reform redefines the arbitrage between current remuneration and pension capital accumulation. Analysis for owner-managers of SMEs.

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All publications →
Contact

A case starts with a conversation.

Send us a few lines. We will respond within 48 hours, in complete confidence.

Request a meetingcontact@bessard-mercier.ch →

Rue du Rhône 8 — 1204 Genève — +41 22 311 47 82