Rethinking Reserves in the Swiss Code of Obligations

Abstract

This work examines reserves in the recently revised Swiss Code of Obligations. The analysis focuses on their creation and dissolution, and distinguishes between reserves formed by the board and reserves formed by the general assembly. By focusing on an instrument in the banking sector, the reserves for general banking risks, this work investigates the general assembly’s possibility to delegate the power to form further reserves to the board of directors based on the articles of the association. This question is analyzed in the context of companies limited by shares, limited liability companies, and cooperatives. Finally, the effects of such a delegation and the consequences in a practical view of going to court are analyzed through the Federal Supreme Court’s judgment in a similar topic of delegation.