Bern, 16.11.2022 – On November 16, 2022, the Federal Council appointed Laura Melusine Baudenbacher as President of the Competition Commission. The lawyer with a doctorate will take over from Andreas Heinemann on January 1, 2023, who is stepping down due to term limits.
Laura Melusine Baudenbacher has profound knowledge of competition law at national and international level with references to the two leading jurisdictions EU and USA. With this broad understanding she brings with her the tools to lead the Competition Commission and effectively represent the Swiss position in international bodies.
Following an internship at a regional court and law firms in Bern and Brussels, she worked as a law clerk at the Federal Administrative Court from 2011 to 2016, focusing on competition law, trademark law, copyright law, and public procurement law. From 2016 to 2021, she worked as an attorney in European, American, and German competition law at the English law firm Linklaters LLP in Brussels and at the American law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP in Brussels and Cologne. She is currently a partner in the law firm Nobel Baudenbacher Attorneys at Law (Zurich | Brussels).
In addition to her native German, Laura Melusine Baudenbacher has a very good command of French, English, Italian, Spanish, and Luxembourgish.
Due to term limits, the incumbent President Andreas Heinemann must step down from office after 12 years as of December 31, 2022.
Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin appointed a selection committee to find a successor. The position was advertised publicly beforehand.