List of professorships at the Law Faculty of the University of Zurich

Library of the Law Faculty of the University of Zurich

The Political Institute was created in Zurich in 1807 to train lawyers and politicians. With the establishment of the Zurich University of Applied Sciences in 1833 (from 1912 University of Zurich ) the Faculty of Political Science began its work. In 1969 it was divided into a legal and an economics department. The Faculty of Law emerged from this in 1992.

Current members

Basic subjects

José Luis Alonso Rodríguez (Full Professor since 2017)

Chair of Roman Law, Legal Papyrology and Private Law

Ulrike Babusiaux (Ordinaria since 2009)

Chair of Roman Law, Private Law and Comparative Law

Wolfgang Ernst (2004 to 2015 Full Professor)

Professor ad personam for Roman law and private law

Christoph Beat Graber (full professor since 2015)

Chair of Legal Sociology with a special focus on media law

Matthias Mahlmann (since 2008 associate professor, since 2013 professor)

Chair of Legal Theory, Legal Sociology and International Public Law

Marcel Senn (since 1995 associate professor, since 1998 professor)

Chair for Legal History, Legal History and Legal Philosophy

Andreas Thier ( full professor since 2004)

Chair for legal history, canon law, legal theory and private law

Civil Law and Civil Procedure Law

Ruth Arnet (since 2011 Ordinaria)

Chair of private law with a focus on property law

Samuel Baumgartner (full professor since 2016)

Chair for civil procedural law, comparative civil procedural law, debt collection and bankruptcy law, private law and mediation

Andrea Büchler (since 2002 extraordinary, since 2008 full professor)

Chair of Private Law and Comparative Law

Tanja Domej (Extraordinaria since 2011, Ordinaria since 2015)

Chair for civil procedural law, private law, international private law and comparative law

Ulrich Haas (full professor since 2008)

Chair of Civil Procedure and Private Law

Helmut Heiss ( full professor since 2007)

Chair of Private Law, Comparative Law and Private International Law

Dominique Jakob (since 2007 associate professor, since 2013 professor)

Chair of Private Law

Margot Michel (assistant professor since 2014)

Assistant professor for civil law and civil procedural law with special attention to family law and procedural issues

Wolfgang Portmann (since 1997 associate professor, since 2000 professor)

Chair of private and labor law

Criminal law

Daniel Jositsch - Professor of Criminal Law and Council of States

Gunhild Godenzi (Ordinaria since 2016)

Chair of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Law

Daniel Jositsch (since 2004 associate professor, since 2012 professor)

Chair of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Law

Frank Meyer (since 2011 associate professor)

Chair of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Law, including International Criminal Law

Christian Schwarzenegger (from 1999 assistant professor, from 2008 associate professor, since 2010 full professor)

Chair of Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure Law and Criminology

Brigitte Tag (since 2002 Ordinaria)

Chair of Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure Law and Medical Law

Marc Thommen (since 2013 associate professor)

Chair of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Law, including Commercial and Administrative Criminal Law

Commercial and business law

Kern Alexander (full professor since 2010)

Chair of private, banking, commercial and financial market law

Franca Contratto (since 2013 Ass.Prof.)

Chair of Financial Market Law

Seraina Grünewald (since 2014 Ass.Prof.)

Chair of Financial Market Law

Andreas Heinemann (since 2007)

Chair for commercial, economic and European law

Reto M. Hilty ( full professor since 2002)

Chair of Intellectual Property Law

Peter Picht (assistant professor since 2016)

Assistant professor for commercial and business law

Rolf Sethe ( full professor since 2008)

Chair of private, commercial and business law

Florent Thouvenin (from 2014 assistant professor, since 2016 associate professor)

Chair of Information and Communication Law

Hans-Ueli Vogt (full professor from 2007, full professor since 2013)

Chair for commercial, commercial and intellectual property law

Hans Caspar von der Crone (full professor from 1995, full professor since 1997)

Chair of private and commercial law

Rolf H. Weber (full professor since 1995)

Chair for private, commercial and European law

Public law: constitutional, administrative and international law

Giovanni Biaggini ( full professor since 1999)

Chair for constitutional, administrative and European law

Oliver Diggelmann ( full professor since 2010)

Chair for international law, European law, public law and state philosophy

Thomas Gächter (since 2006 associate professor, since 2012 professor)

Chair of State, Administrative and Social Security Law

Andreas Glaser (associate professor since 2013)

Chair for constitutional, administrative and European law with special attention to questions of democracy

Alain Griffel (full professor since 2005)

Chair of constitutional and administrative law with a focus on spatial planning, building and environmental law

Christine Kaufmann (since 2002 assistant professor, since 2003 full professor)

Chair for constitutional and administrative law, international and European law

Helen Keller (since 2004 Ordinaria)

Chair of Public Law, European and International Law

Regina Kiener (since 2009 full professor)

Chair of Public Law

Andreas Kley ( Full Professor since 2005)

Chair of Public Law, Constitutional History and Philosophy of State and Law

René Matteotti ( full professor since 2012)

Chair for Swiss, European and International Tax Law

Daniel Moeckli (assistant professor since 2012)

Assistant professor for international law and constitutional law

Matthias Oesch (since 2013 associate professor)

Chair of Public Law, European Law and International Business Law

Johannes Reich (assistant professor since 2012)

Assistant professor for constitutional and administrative law

Madeleine Simonek (Extraordinaria since 2009, Ordinaria since 2012)

Chair for Swiss and International Tax Law

Felix Uhlmann (since 2006 associate professor, since 2012 professor)

Chair of constitutional and administrative law as well as legal theory

Former members (selection)

21st century

Andreas Auer , full professor at the chair for public law from 2008, retired in 2013, died in 2018

Peter Breitschmid , full professor from 2002, chair of private law with a focus on the Civil Code, retirement 2019

Andreas Donatsch , from 1987 assistant professor, from 1990 associate professor, from 1992 full professor, chair for criminal law and criminal procedure law, retired in 2018

Claire Huguenin , full professor of private, commercial and European law from 1997, died in 2018

Martin Killias , full professor from 2006, chair for criminal law and criminal procedure law including criminology, retired in 2013

Bernhard Rütsche , SNSF professorship for public law and legal philosophy 2009, call to Lucerne 2010

Anton K. Schnyder , from 2003 full professor, chair for private and commercial law, international private and civil procedure law and comparative law, retired in 2018

Peter Nobel , full professor ad personam from 2007, chair for Swiss and international commercial and economic law, retired 2012

20th century

After his retirement, Stefan Trechsel was elected substitute judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague

Max Huber , eminent diplomat and long-standing ICRC president

Claire Huguenin , appointed Ordinaria for private, commercial and European law 1997, died 2018

Isaak Meier , appointed full professor for civil procedure law, debt collection and bankruptcy law, private law and mediation in 1991, retired in 2016

Tobias Jaag , appointed professor for constitutional, administrative and European law in 1990, retired in 2013

Paul Oberhammer , appointment to full professor for Swiss and international civil procedure, debt collection and bankruptcy law as well as private and commercial law 2003, appointment to Vienna 2011

Stefan Trechsel , appointed full professor for criminal law, criminal procedural law and criminal law auxiliary sciences in 1999, retired in 2004

Marie Theres Fögen , appointment to the Ordinaria for Roman Law, Private Law and Comparative Law 1995; † 2008

Karl Spühler , appointed professor for civil procedure law, debt collection and bankruptcy law and private law in 1995, retired in 2002

Heribert Rausch , appointed full professor for public law, especially environmental law 1992, retired 2007

Beatrice Weber-Dürler , appointed Ordinaria for Constitutional and Administrative Law 1990, retired in 2008

Heinrich Honsell , appointed professor for Swiss and European private law in 1989, retired in 2007

Roger Zäch , appointed professor for private, commercial and European law in 1989, retired in 2006

Dieter Zobl , appointed professor for private, commercial and banking law in 1988, retired in 2010

Heinz Rey , appointed full professor for private law in 1987, retired in 2007

Kurt Siehr , appointed professor for private law, comparative law and international private law 1987, promotion to professor 1991, retirement 2002

Regina Ogorek , appointment to Ordinaria 1987, call to Mainz 1994

Robert Hauser , Professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Law, retired 1987

Daniel Thürer , appointed professor for international law, European law, constitutional law and administrative law 1983, retired 2010

Niklaus Schmid , appointed full professor for criminal law, criminal procedure law and criminology in 1983, retired in 1999

Walther J. Habscheid , appointed professor for civil procedural law 1983, retired 1991

Walter Ott , appointment as assistant professor for legal philosophy, legal theory and private law 1982, promotion to associate professor 1987, promotion to professor 1987, retirement 2008

Günther Kaiser , appointed professor ad personam for criminology and criminal law in 1982, retired in 1996

Georg Müller , appointed professor for constitutional and administrative law 1979, promotion to professor for constitutional and administrative law and legislative theory 1982, retired in 2006

Alfred Kölz , appointed assistant professor for constitutional law, administrative law and constitutional history 1979, promotion to associate professor 1982, promotion to professor 1983; † 2003

Anton Heini , Full Professor of Private Law and International Private Law 1979, retired in 1997

Hans Michael Riemer , appointed assistant professor for private law 1978, promotion to associate professor 1980, promotion to professor 1983, retirement 2007

Peter Weimar , appointed professor for private law and Roman law in 1976, promotion to professor in 1981, retired in 2003

Walter Haller , appointed professor for constitutional and administrative law in 1975, promotion to professor for constitutional law, administrative law and comparative constitutional law in 1979, retired in 2004

Clausdieter Schott , appointed full professor for legal history and private law 1975, retired in 2004

Walter R. Schluep , appointed full professor for commercial law, business law and European law in 1975, retired in 1996

Peter Forstmoser , appointed professor for private, commercial and capital markets law 1974, promotion to professor 1978, retirement 2008

Manfred Rehbinder , appointed professor for labor law, intellectual property law, media law and legal sociology in 1973, retired in 2002

Hans Ulrich Walder-Richli , appointed full professor of civil procedure law, debt collection law and bankruptcy law 1973, retired in 1994

Cyril Hegnauer , appointed full professor for civil law in 1973, retired in 1986

Emil Wilhelm Stark , appointed associate professor for the Civil Code and the Code of Obligations in 1970, promotion to full professor in 1980, retirement in 1988

Jörg Rehberg , appointment to assistant professor for criminal law, criminal procedure law and criminal law auxiliary sciences, including criminology 1969, promotion to professor 1971, promotion to professor 1976, retirement 1998

Claudio Soliva , appointed assistant professor for legal history and private law 1968, promotion to associate professor 1974, promotion to professorial professor 1980, retirement 1995

Hans Peter , appointment as full professor for Roman law, private law comparative law and Swiss civil law 1967; † 1985

Max Keller , appointed assistant professor for civil code, the law of obligations, private insurance and international private law in 1965, promotion to associate professor in 1967, promotion to professor in 1968, retirement in 1991

Dietrich Schindler junior , appointed professor for international law and constitutional law in 1964, promotion to professor in 1965, retired in 1989

Ulrich Häfelin , appointment as assistant professor for constitutional law, constitutional history, administrative law, general political theory 1963, promotion to associate professor 1969, promotion to professor 1972, retirement 1990; † 2016

Peter Noll , appointed professor for criminal law and criminal procedure law, criminology and legislative theory in 1962; † 1982

Arthur Meier-Hayoz , appointed professor for civil code, commercial law and the law of obligations 1957, resignation 1985

Karl S. Bader , appointed full professor for Swiss and German legal history, criminal process and auxiliary criminal law sciences 1953, retired 1975

Erwin R. Frey , appointed associate professor for criminal law, criminal procedure law and criminology in 1952, promotion to professor in 1954

Max Guldener , appointment as associate professor for civil procedure law, debt collection and bankruptcy law as well as for the introduction to law in 1949, promotion to professor 1952

Max Imboden , appointed associate professor for federal state law (later cantonal administrative law and tax law) in 1949, appointed to Basel in 1953

Hans Nef , appointed professor for legal philosophy and constitutional and administrative law in 1946, then promotion to professor, retired in 1982

Werner Kägi , appointed professor for international law, constitutional law, canon law and constitutional history in 1946, promotion to professor in 1952, retirement in 1979

Gottfried Weiss , appointment as professor for civil and commercial law 1945; † 1956

Karl Oftinger , appointment as associate professor for the law of obligations, insurance law, civil code and introduction to jurisprudence in 1942, promotion to professor in 1944, retirement in 1974

Hans Felix Pfenninger , appointed professor for criminal law, criminal procedure law and forensics in 1932, promotion to professor in 1942

Zaccaria Giacometti , appointed associate professor for public law and canon law in 1927, promoted to professorial professor in 1936, retired in 1961

Dietrich Schindler senior , appointed professor in 1927, promotion to professor of constitutional and administrative law in 1936 (later also international law and legal philosophy); † 1948

Andreas Bertalan Schwarz , appointed professor for Roman law in 1926, call to Freiburg i. Br. 1929

Hans Fritzsche , appointed full professor for civil litigation, international private and civil procedural law, comparative law and introduction to law in 1924

Eduard His was appointed full professor of public law in 1921, from 1927 private scholar

Andreas von Tuhr was appointed professor of Roman law in 1920; † 1925

Paul Mutzner , appointment of full professor for German and Swiss legal history and private law in 1918, resignation for health reasons in 1939

Fritz Fleiner , professor for public law and canon law in 1915, retired in 1936

Ernst Hafter , appointment as associate professor for criminal law, criminal procedure law and debt collection and bankruptcy law 1905, retired in 1942

August Egger , appointed professor for Swiss civil and commercial law in 1904, promotion to professor in 1905, retired in 1944

Max Huber , appointed professor for constitutional law, international law and canon law in 1902, resigned in 1922

19th century

After his release in Leipzig after the May uprising, Theodor Mommsen taught in Zurich for two years

Johann Caspar Bluntschli taught in Zurich from the foundation of the university in 1833 until he was called to Munich in 1848

Hermann Ferdinand Hitzig , appointed professor for Roman law in 1895, promotion to professor in 1897; † 1911

Georg Cohn , appointed full professor for German private law, legal history, commercial law, bill of exchange law and insurance law 1892; † 1918

Jakob Schollenberger , appointed professor for public law in 1891, promotion to professor in 1895, resignation in 1917

Emil Zürcher , appointed professor for criminal law and criminal procedure law in 1890; † 1926

Friedrich Meili , appointed professor for international private law, comparative law and traffic law in 1885, promotion to professor in 1895; † 1914

Karl von Lilienthal , appointed professor for criminal law in 1882, appointed to Marburg in 1889

Emil Brunnenmeister , appointed full professor for criminal law, criminal and civil procedure law in 1879, appointed to Halle in 1882

Albert Schneider (legal scholar) , appointed full professor of Roman law in 1878, successor to Max Conrat, † 1904

Max Conrat , appointed professor of Roman law in 1875, promotion to professor in 1876, appointed to Amsterdam in 1878

Johann Jakob Treichler , appointed professor for Swiss private law in 1872, retired in 1895

Eduard Hölder , appointed professor of Roman law in 1872, appointed to Greifswald in 1874

Gustav Vogt , appointed professor for constitutional law in 1870; † 1901

Adolf Exner , appointed full professor for Roman law in 1868, appointed to Vienna in 1872

Alfred Boretius , appointed full professor for German and public law in 1868, appointed to Berlin in 1871

Ferdinand Regelsberger , appointed professor for Roman law in 1862, promotion to professor in 1863, appointed to Giessen in 1868

Aloys von Orelli , appointed professor for German law in 1858 (interruption 1863–1871), promotion to professor in 1873; † 1892

Heinrich Dernburg was appointed professor of Roman law in 1854, promotion to professor a short time later, appointed to Halle in 1862

Theodor Mommsen , appointed professor of Roman law in 1852, appointed to Breslau in 1854

Eduard Osenbrüggen , appointed professor for criminal law in 1851; † 1879

Heinrich Fick , appointed professor for Roman law, commercial and exchange law in 1851, promotion to professor in 1864; † 1895

Albrecht Erxleben , appointed full professor of Roman law and canon law in 1841, left for Rostock in 1854

Friedrich Ludwig Keller , appointment as full professor at the Political Institute in 1826, appointment as associate professor for Zurich particular law and Roman law at the newly founded University of Zurich in 1833, promotion to full professor in 1838

Wilhelm Snell , appointed full professor of Roman law in 1833, appointed to Bern in the same year

Johann Caspar Bluntschli , appointed professor for Roman law, German law and legal history in 1833, promotion to professor in 1836, appointed to Munich in 1848

Heinrich Escher , appointed professor for constitutional law, international law, criminal law and economics in 1833; † 1870

Ludwig Löw von und zu Steinfurth (President of the Court) (1833–1840), university professor in Zurich

literature

Ernst Gagliardi ,   Hans Nabholz , Jean Stohl: The University of Zurich 1833-1933 and its predecessors: Festschrift for the celebration of the century. Verlag des Erziehungsdirektion, Zurich 1938.
Monika Landert-Scheuber: The Political Institute in Zurich 1807–1833: A preliminary stage of the law and political science faculty of the University of Zurich (= writings on Zurich university and scholarly history. Vol. 9). H. Rohr, Zurich 1992, ISBN 3-85865-208-3 .
Peter Stadler (overall editor): The University of Zurich 1933–1983: Festschrift for the 150th anniversary of the University of Zurich. University of Zurich, Zurich 1983, ISBN 3-85823-086-3 .