Criminal proceedings and interpreters

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Criminal proceedings are conducted in the official language of the canton. The Swiss Criminal Procedure Code guarantees a person who does not understand the language of the proceedings the right to an interpreter, free of charge, and the translation of the essential documents.¹ In white-collar cases involving international companies, which the Zug public prosecutor's office and the Office of the Attorney General investigate, the documents are often in English. The prosecutors and courts must work with large volumes of English material, from e-mails and contracts to bank records and trading data.

The prosecutors have adapted to this situation. Many of them read English well. The authorities also accept English documents as evidence without full translation where the parties agree. The formal acts of the proceedings, such as the indictment and the judgment, remain in German. Defendants and their lawyers must deal with the proceedings in German, which requires defence lawyers who master both languages. Advisers who practise economic criminal law in Zug therefore need a command of English as well as of German, a combination that is in high demand and short supply.

Notes

Swiss Criminal Procedure Code (StPO, SR 312.0), Art. 68 paras 1 and 2, text on droit-bilingue.ch (the director of proceedings appoints a translator for a participant who does not understand the language of the proceedings; the accused is informed, orally or in writing, of at least the essential content of the most important procedural acts in a language he or she understands); Art. 426 para. 3 lit. b StPO, text on swissrights.ch: the accused does not bear the costs of translations that became necessary because the accused speaks a foreign language. ↩

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of September 2025.

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Dr Alexander Ressos, TEP

Rechtsanwalt/Attorney-at-Law

I am a Swiss attorney-at-law and also admitted as a solicitor in Hong Kong and in England & Wales, with almost 25 years of experience.

Together with my multilingual team, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Ukrainian and French native speakers, I advise companies and their owners from around the world on the full range of banking, corporate, commercial and tax law matters in Switzerland, including international tax planning, fiduciary services, and legal family office services including immigration & relocation or real estate investments. My practice has a particular focus on clients from growth and frontier markets in Greater China, Central Asia and the Caucasus, the rest of Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, and I equally advise clients from Europe and North America. Through an affiliated Swiss trust company, we also take care of the incorporation and ongoing administration of their companies and other structures, including accounting, tax returns and corporate secretarial services, and I serve as a professional director where required. With the support of a network of first-class cooperation partners, I also implement solutions worldwide.

My approach is to act as a trusted advisor who works directly with decision-makers, on an equal footing: I start from what you want to achieve and shape every structure, contract and tax decision around your commercial goals and how it improves your after-tax return. As “lawyers who make it happen”, my team and I stay involved until your company is set up, your structure is in place and your transaction has closed, and we remain available for any follow-on work that may be required. You benefit from bespoke solutions and personal attention, and sound, friendly and practical advice. We are not the lowest-cost provider in the market, nor do we intend to be; our aim is to deliver well-founded, proper solutions and excellent value for money.

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Criminal proceedings and interpreters

Notes

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