Facts
On 9 January 2018, the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) launched a criminal administrative investigation against unknown persons based on art. 37 et seq. of the Federal Act of 22 March 1974 on Administrative Criminal Law (ACLA), due to suspicions of anticipatory tax evasion within the meaning of art. 61 let. a of the Federal Act of 13 October 1965 on Withholding Tax (WTA) committed in the management of company B. SA for the years 2011 to 2015.
By a request for the production of documents of 21 June 2018, the FTA requested company A. to produce a number of documents related to the audit of company B. SA's accounts. Through its counsel, A. opposed this request and applied for the sealing of all documents annexed to its letter of 30 July 2018.
The FTA, on 24 September 2018, requested the Court of Complaints of the Federal Criminal Court to lift these seals. The opponent principally concluded that this request should be rejected and, alternatively, requested the implementation of a sorting of the relevant documents, or the redaction of the names of its employees on the documents for which the seals would be lifted.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined whether the secrecy of the auditing body could be invoked to oppose the lifting of the seals. According to art. 730b para. 2 CO, the auditing body keeps secret its findings, unless the law obliges it to reveal them.
The Federal Court considered that the secrecy of the auditing body is not mentioned in art. 50 para. 2 ACLA and that auditors must be considered as holders of other secrets protected by law within the meaning of art.…