FINMA’s Enforcement in Court

This article presents an empirical and qualitative analysis of the judicial review of the Swiss Financial Markets Supervisory Authority’s (FINMA) enforce­ment of financial market laws by the Federal Adminis­trative Court and the Federal Supreme Court. It is part of a broader research project on global enforcement against financial institutions and their managers and employees. Based on an overview of FINMA’s enforcement, the appeal rate against FINMA decisions and the success rate of such complaints is discussed. In addi­tion, the article analyses key areas in which the courts have supported or set limits to FINMA practices. State­ments on the right to a fair trial and the scope of FIN­MA’s discretion are the object of a special analysis. In an overall assessment, the authors come to the conclu­sion that, despite FINMA’s relatively high success rate in court, there is an effective judicial control over its enforcement.