Michael Kunz
Senior Legal Associate, LL.M.
Profile
Michael Kunz joined MME in 2017. He previously worked as an attorney at a leading Swiss legal protection insurance company and worked for several organizations in the greater Seattle area after passing the Washington State bar exam. Michael Kunz focuses his practice on the areas of contract law, fintech and distributed ledger technology regulation. Furthermore, he is engaged in the areas of intellectual property law, technology transfer and intellectual property licensing.
Business activities
- Contract Law
- Blockchain | DLT | FinTech
- Information Technology and Intellectual Property Law
- Technology Transfer and License Agreements
- Data Protection, Big Data, IT Compliance
- Software Protection
Education
- 2016
- Admitted to the Washington State Bar (USA)
- 2016
- University of Washington (LL.M. in Intellectual Property Law and Policy)
- 2013
- Admitted to the Swiss Bar
- 2011
- University of Zurich (MLaw)
- 2010
- University of Zurich (BLaw)
Languages
- German
- English
- French
- Spanish
Practical Experience
- since 2018
- Senior Legal Associate at MME
- 2017
- Legal Associate at MME
- 2017
- Attorney at Intellectual Ventures, Bellevue (USA)
- 2017
- Attorney at Seattle Symphony, Seattle (USA)
- 2016
- Legal Intern at CoMotion Innovation Center, Seattle (USA)
- 2013-2015
- Attorney at a Swiss Legal Protection Insurance Company
- 2011
- Law Clerk at the District Court of Wil (SG)
Memberships
- Washington State Bar Association (WSBA)
- Swiss Bar Association (SAV)
- Zurich Bar Association (ZAV)
Listings
The Legal 500 (www.legal500.com)
MME Legal | Tax | Compliance's lawyers are 'professional, knowledgeable, and well co-ordinated' and provide a 'timely delivery' of fintech-related services. The practice assisted global bitcoin provider Xapo Holding with its Swiss operation and all Finma negotiations, and founded Daura AG alongside Swisscom – the first digital Swiss share register using blockchain. Thomas Linder and Andreas Glarner are 'exceptionally good' and founding partner and crypto-finance expert Luka Müller is routinely involved in asset regulation, developing DLT protocols and the set-up of peer-to-peer lending platforms. Senior associate Michael Kunz is another name of note; Michèle Landtwing Leupi made partner in January 2019.
‘The individuals we have worked with are true experts in their fields, and consistently very responsive. We have had a positive experience working with Andreas Glarner and Michael Kunz.‘
The 'availability, breadth of knowledge, and quality of service are exceptional' at MME Legal | Tax | Compliance. It handles software and pharmaceutical licensing disputes, public procurement tenders, as well as alleged copyright infringement matters. Founding partner Martin Eckert jointly heads the practice with Andreas Glarner, who provides 'impeccable and trustworthy' advice and proves himself to be of 'indispensable value' when advising international technology companies. Senior associate Michael Kunz is another name of note for GDPR contracts and other IT-based work.
Services
Contact
Secretariat
Susanne Jöhr
Assistant
Email
From the magazine
Duty to report cyber attacks
With its Guidance 05/2020, FINMA recalls the already applicable legal obligation to report substantial incidents and specifies the requirements with regard to cyber attacks. The following article is an interpretative aid to the FINMA Guidance and shows the need for action for FINMA-supervised institutions.
Differentiation of the investment advisor
Since the Financial Institutions Act and the Financial Services Act entered into force on 1 January 2020, certain financial market players are now subject to a licensing or registration requirement. These include asset managers, who now require a FINMA licence to carry out their activities, but also investment and client advisors, who must now register in a register of advisors and (like asset managers) join an ombudsman's office. In practice, it is not always clear when a player in the financial market sector is considered an investment advisor and which activities even qualify as asset management requiring a license.
All magazine reports