About us

Reed Smith has an association with Chabrier & Partners, a Swiss law firm based in Geneva.

The association gives Reed Smith a presence in Switzerland - an increasingly important geographical base for clients in the international trade, energy, commodities and trade finance sectors.

Switzerland and, in particular, Geneva is a major business centre for commodity and energy trading and trade finance and a number of the firm's premier clients have significant trading presences in Switzerland. The association is seen not only as a way of supporting those clients but also as an important step for the firm's continued growth in these sectors. With Reed Smith lawyers from London working from the Geneva office on a rota basis, they will provide a seamless service to clients based in Switzerland with a need for UK legal services.

Chabrier & Partners is a commercial law firm with extensive experience in commodities, trading, trade finance, arbitration, transportation, distribution and taxation. Chabrier & Partners have a wide range of expertise including advising on commercial disputes before Swiss courts and international tribunals. The firm also advises clients on commercial and transactional matters including trade finance.

Our Energy, Trade and Commodities group has had extensive experience working with clients with a Swiss presence. This includes international commercial arbitrations for Swiss based energy clients, trade finance transactions with Swiss banks and for Swiss corporates, and the enforcement of arbitral awards and commercial court judgments against Swiss-located assets. They have also had experience of enforcing worldwide freezing orders against Swiss companies, or companies with assets located in Switzerland.

Patrick Chabrier is well known within the London and Swiss markets as a commodities specialist, with expertise in commodities dating back over many years. He works in partnership with two other Swiss lawyers, Marc Gillieron and Karim Khoury with whom he has established a successful practice with a particular focus on commercial matters of a contentious and non-contentious nature.

Attorney information

Patrick Chabrier

Patrick Chabrier is Senior Partner of Chabrier & Partners.  He specialises in Corporate and Business Law and International Trade with emphasis on all matters relating to the sale, transportation, financing, insurance, and warehousing of commodities.  He is a Member of the Paris Bar Association and affiliated to the Geneva Bar Association.

Experience 

• 1968-1969:  Legal Department of Chargeurs Reunis SA (Paris), Holding Company of the (then) largest private maritime (Compagnie Maritime des Chargeurs Reunis, Fabre Line, Croisieres Paquet) and airline (U.T.A.) group in France
• 1969-1982:  C.L.O. of CIE Continentale (France) S.A. then of Finagrain S.A, Geneva (World Merchandising Centre of Continental Grain Company, New York)
• Since 1982:  Attorney-at-Law practising in Geneva with local law firms (Troller, Vesely, Petitpierre (which became Maas & Partners), then Ziegler, Poncet, Grumbach) before setting up his own firm in 2001, mainly acting as Advisor to multinational companies established in or outside of Switzerland and, for most of them, specialising in international trade and agri-business

Notable Work

• Conducted multiple business or dispute resolution negotiations, organised the setting-up of mergers and/or spin-offs amongst numerous commercial and industrial entities or enterprises as well as joint-ventures, drafting and negotiation of contracts for the financing, acquisition or construction of industrial plants, mills, warehousing facilities etc, in many countries such as France and most other EU countries, including Russia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Northern Africa, Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Hong Kong, the Republic of Congo, Senegal, Argentina, and Brazil.
• Conducted and/or monitored numerous litigations before various Courts in France, England, Switzerland, Luxemburg (C.J.C.E.) as well as arbitrations before many Arbitral Tribunals in Geneva (I.C.C, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Geneva), London (GAFTA, FOSFA, L.M.A.A.), Liverpool (L.C.A. now I.C.A.), Paris (I.C.C., Bourse du Commerce).

Marc Gillieron

Marc Gillieron graduated from the universities of Geneva and Bern.  He trained at Ziegler, Poncet & Grumbach where he practised on numerous international litigations and arbitrations involving criminal proceedings.  Marc joined Chabrier & Partners in 2001 and became a partner in 2003.

Expertise

• He specialises in international trade and finance matters including litigations. He also has a wide expertise and experience in property transactions and financing
• His recent practice includes international joint-venture transactions involving a US listed Group of companies, acquisitions by EU companies of agri-industrial assets and port facilities located in Ukraine, set-up of a USD 30m EBRD loan facility to a Ukrainian based vegetable oil exporter, interim measures taken in Geneva against  State/statal assets by two major European banks within the frame of a EUR 50m dispute, litigation involving a Swiss-based cotton trader against a CIS state, advising and representing a Swiss investment group in a CHF 100m commercial and residential property development, and commercial and residential property transactions

Karim Khoury

Karim graduated from the University of Geneva. He trained at law firm Ming, Halperin, Burger & Inaudi from 1998 to 2000, during which time he appeared in major criminal proceedings involving important businessmen or political individuals.  He was also involved in major arbitration and financial cases.  Karim passed his bar exam in 2001 and joined Froriep Renggli, an international law firm based in Zurich, Zug, Geneva, London and Madrid, in 2002 as associate in its Commercial and Financial law Department.  Karim joined Chabrier & Partners in 2004 as partner.

Expertise

• Specialises in international commercial and finance matters including litigation and dispute resolution
• Expertise in Swiss financial law, including anti-money laundering and stock-exchange and securities regulations
• Recent practice includes the set-up of international structures involving Swiss and foreign companies, investment funds, as well as foundations, and the obtaining of special tax rulings. Karim participated in the draft of a GBP 10 profit participation note issued by a foreign company. He also supervised the due diligence process within the frame of the acquisition, by an EU company, of an important factory in Russia and was involved in real estate transactions, including the sale of a CHF 23m property in Geneva.  Finally, Karim was involved in the attachment in Geneva of the assets of ex-CIS and African States for a total amount of CHF 5m.

Mario Brandulas

Mario Brandulas trained at Froriep Renggli, Geneva.  He qualified as an Avocat at the Bar of Geneva in 2006 and joined Chabrier & Partners as an Associate upon qualification.

Practice Areas

• Litigation
• Corporate
• Commercial

Notable Work

• Interim measures successfully taken in Geneva against a State/public assets, within the frame of several disputes involving major European banks and States of Africa and Asia
• Enforcement in Switzerland of GAFTA, CCIG & ICC Arbitration Awards

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