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 1.    School bullying: a 21st century societal phenomenon

Bullying is generally defined as an aggressive, intentional act perpetrated by an individual or a group of individuals, repeatedly against a victim who cannot easily defend himself or herself.

More specifically, school bullying is characterized by three aspects: the repetition of a behavior, creating a relationship of domination and the existence of an intention to harm. It takes the form of aggressive behavior, whether verbal (threats, insults, lies, mockery), relational (exclusion), physical (beatings, racketeering, sexual harassment) or material (theft, damage, etc.). The effects on the young victim can be extremely harmful: dropping out of school, social isolation, anxiety, depression or somatization. In the long term, the victim of harassment can suffer significant consequences in his or her psychological and social development.

The main problem is the difficulty victims have in expressing their suffering. Therefore, fighting against school bullying requires first of all an awareness raising among students and school staff in order to avoid any lack of reactivity or minimization of the phenomenon.

2.    Different international approaches to a new form of harassment

● French law: the development of legislation criminalizing school harassment
In French law, harassment is punishable under the Penal Code (C. pén. art. 222-33-2-2). Acts of harassment in the school environment are therefore covered by this offence. The French Penal Code also criminalizes violence resulting from acts of hazing and hazing itself, incitement to suicide, as well as the dissemination of degrading images or invasion of privacy (C. pén. art. 223 ff). A right to continue one's schooling without harassment has even been enshrined in article 511-3-1 of the Education Code. However, despite the qualification of school harassment as a criminally reprehensible offence, no sanction is mentioned.
● The German case: the violation of the student's personality by the teacher
Unlike French law, German law does not directly provide for instruments to punish school harassment, but its constituent acts are nevertheless likely to be sanctioned by various provisions of the Criminal Code or by disciplinary measures.
The Oberlandesgericht noted that there is a duty of protection on the part of teachers towards pupils during school hours, as long as the latter are obliged to attend school. In the Ruling of the Oberlandesgericht Zweibrücken (Germany) of May 6, 1997, Az. 7O 1150/93), it was considered that the seriousness of the infringement justified the payment of moral damages.
● The Anglo-Saxon approach: the central role of schools
In the United States, in the absence of federal legislation aimed at specifically punishing harassment as such, including school harassment, there is some protection against acts of harassment with specific characteristics. Each state has anti-harassment laws or amendments. These laws have some common denominators, such as requiring schools to take action.
The United Kingdom also has no specific anti-bullying instruments, delegating to schools the task of protecting schoolchildren, including outside the school grounds. The imposition of sanctions in the event of reprehensible behaviour is possible without any obligation on the part of the schools in this respect, unlike in American state laws.
It can therefore be seen that, in these two examples, the school is in the front line of responsibility, whether because of the risk of action against it or the threat of administrative measures.
● Swiss law: a legal vacuum on the issue of school bullying
In Swiss law, school bullying is not subject to any specific provision. However, the doctrine generally tends to assimilate it to art. 328 of the Code of Obligations, which concretizes the protection of the employee's personality against harassment occurring in the workplace. In fact, the community bond on which this article is based also exists between students and other members of the school. It is based on the duty to attend compulsory school. A crucial distinction must be made between the obsessive dimension of harassment (or stalking) and school harassment as described above (ATF 5A_526/2009 of 5 October 2009, c. 5.3, SJ 2011 I 65). Taken separately, the acts of the schoolchildren may seem harmless, but taken as a whole, their repetitive nature is destructive for the young victims.
At the legal level, cantonal laws also provide for instruments to sanction the failure of pupils to perform their duties. Art. 115 al. 2 of the Law on Public Education of September 17, 2015 mentions that "any act of violence, in any form, committed by students in or out of school [towards teachers and fellow students] is prohibited."
In view of the different legal approaches put in place, it seems that school bullying in its legal aspect is very poorly regulated or even unknown in some legislations. Switzerland, being one of the latter, focuses its attention on making schools responsible. However, it is frequently observed that prohibitions of violence are only accompanied by light disciplinary or administrative sanctions. They are almost insufficient in a context of harassment involving vulnerable people. Thus, it is necessary to take a stand on the problem by putting in place a strict policy of prevention and adequate legal sanctions to prevent the perpetrators and bystanders of harassment from minimizing the problem.
This article does not aim to evaluate which system would be the best, but highlights the need for a legal qualification. Legislation specific to school bullying could help to better target the problem and ensure a minimum of legal security for victims.
Ambre Schindler & Jennifer Gaumann

The trust is an ancient legal institution under Anglo-Saxon law. Although not provided for in our legal system, it has been recognised in Switzerland since the entry into force, on 1 July 2007, of the Hague Convention on the Law Applicable to Trusts and their Recognition of 1 July 1985.

According to Art. 11 para. 1 of the Convention, a trust validly constituted under the applicable foreign law is recognised in the other States parties to the Convention.

Given the complexity and flexibility of this institution, which may take several forms and pursue different purposes, there is no single definition of a trust. At the international level, the Convention has proposed the following definition in Art. 2(1): "[...] the term "trust" refers to the legal relationships created - inter vivos or on death - by a person, the settlor, when assets have been placed under the control of a trustee for the benefit of a beneficiary or for a specified purpose.".

The trust is therefore an institution with three parties:

- the settlor, who may be a natural or legal person, is the one who transfers his property to the trustee

- the trustee is the person who formally holds the assets, who becomes the "legal owner" of them

- the beneficiaries, who for the sake of simplicity can be indicated as the economic owners of the trust property.

The trust may be constituted by inter vivos trust or by testamentary trust. It should be noted that the deed of trust is a unilateral act of the settlor, not subject to the acceptance of the trustee, and that the trust does not have legal personality, which distinguishes it from the institution of the foundation.

In Switzerland, trusts are an important asset planning instrument, particularly in the area of inheritance, to enable the transmission of assets over several generations.

In order to prevent Swiss clients from having to turn to foreign countries to set up trusts, Parliament has instructed the Federal Council, through motion 18.3383, to create the legal basis for the introduction of this institution in Swiss law.

If the trust were to be introduced in our country, it would be necessary to adapt the Code of Obligations and other federal laws, in particular tax laws, which would explicitly specify the rules to which the trust would be subject.

The consultation procedure opened by the Federal Council on 12 January 2022 will last until 30 April 2022.

For further information, please visit

https://www.admin.ch/gov/fr/accueil/documentation/communiques.msg-id-86746.html

In the banking relationship between the client and the service provider, three types of legal relationship can be identified under Swiss and European law: i) execution only, ii) investment advice, iii) management mandate.

What distinguishes them is the degree of involvement of the service provider on the one hand, and the degree of protection given to the client on the other.

An execution-only contract, which, as its name suggests, consists of the provider's sole execution of client orders, will not confer any particular protection on the client. Indeed, the Swiss legislator and, to a lesser extent, the European legislator consider that in order to keep this type of relationship simple, cheap and fast, it is up to the client himself to safeguard his interests.

On the other hand, in more complex legal relationships such as investment advice and management mandates, it can be observed that the greater the activity of the service provider, the greater the degree of client protection.

In the investment advice contract, the decision whether or not to carry out a transaction is taken by the client, but the provider can make suggestions and thus influence the client.

In the management mandate, by delegation from the client, the service provider replaces the client in the decision-making process and in the conclusion of transactions.

While the distinction between the management mandate and other types of banking relationships is clear, the differences between the execution-only contract and the investment advisory contract may be more subtle.

In both cases, the decision on which operations to carry out rests with the client. If an operation goes wrong, the question arises as to who is responsible for the consequences.

In the execution only contract, at least from the point of view of Swiss case law, the service provider is not obliged to ensure the general safeguarding of the client's interests (BGer 4A_369/2015 of 25, recital 2.3), nor is he obliged to assume a general duty to provide information, either about the orders given by the client, or about the likely development of the chosen investments and the measures to be taken to limit the risks (BGE 133 III 97 recital 7.1.1; BGer 4A_336/2014, recital 4.2). Nor does he have to verify the appropriateness of the transaction requested by the client, or its suitability in relation to the client's portfolio as a whole.

Exceptionally, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court has accepted the existence of a duty to warn on the part of the service provider, in particular when the service provider realises or should have realised that the client has not identified the risk associated with the investment he is considering, or in the case of a special relationship of trust developed in the context of a long-term business relationship between the client and the financial services provider (BGer 4A_369/2015, recital 2.3).

In the investment advice contract, Swiss case law notes that the service provider's duties to inform, advise and warn are not set out in general terms, but depend on the type of contract concluded and the circumstances of the specific case, in particular the client's knowledge and experience (BGer 4A_336/2014, recital 4.2.; BGer 4A_364/2013, recital 6.2). In particular, when the provider makes a recommendation about a particular security, he must be aware of several factors, including the client's personal financial situation, the degree of risk the client is prepared to take and whether the advice he gives also relates to the suitability of the investment envisaged (BGE 133 III 97, para. 7.2; BGer 4A_444/2012, para. 3.2).

In conclusion, in an execution-only contract the service provider's duty to inform is the weakest and, as a rule, the client himself is liable for his transactions. In contrast, the investment advice contract entails more obligations for the service provider and the latter may, under certain conditions, be liable for the damage suffered by the client.

From a public law perspective, the European and Swiss legislators have adopted the MiFID II Directive and the Financial Services Act (FinSA), respectively, in order to ensure greater transparency in the markets and enhanced consumer protection. These laws, which detail the information obligations of financial service providers, will be the subject of a future article.

In addition to our many years of expertise in financial matters, our firm also succeeded in obtaining the highest compensation in the world for claims against a major US financial institution following the collapse of Lehman Brothers.

When our firm undertook the legal defense of a large number of passengers on board the NORMAN ATLANTIC that caught fire on 28 December 2014, despite the satisfactory compensation we subsequently obtained for our clients, we said never again but unfortunately, history repeats itself.

Another Italian ship on the Adriatic line the Euroferry Olympia again caught fire on 18 February 2022 and at this moment at least 11 people are already missing while the ship is being towed on fire.  Responsibilities have not yet been assigned but it is certain that they are many and scattered in many directions.

The damage is enormous and multiple and the legal treatment of responsibility requires special attention, as in the case of the Norman Atlantic. Our office, in coordination with our associates, maritime lawyers in Greece and Italy, within the framework of our international organization Global Justice Network, with whom we have jointly handled the Norman Atlantic case, is at the disposal of those involved in this tragic accident for any assistance or information without any obligation or commitment on their part.