Facts
- On 22 September 1960, AFIT founded the international investment fund INTERGLOBE, with the Swiss Fiduciary Supervisory Company as the supervisory body and UNIVERSA as the trustee. - In May 1967, AFIT decided to liquidate the INTERGLOBE fund. In September 1969, the Federal Banking Commission revoked AFIT's authorization and appointed the Swiss Fiduciary Supervisory Company as the administrator of the fund in liquidation. - In December 1971, the Swiss Fiduciary Supervisory Company filed a damages claim against AFIT, DENNER AG, UNIVERSA and REVISA, alleging that they had caused millions of francs in damages to investors through misleading information, mismanagement and poor investments. - The defendants contested the standing of the Swiss Fiduciary Supervisory Company as the administrator of the INTERGLOBE fund.Considerations
1. According to Art. 12 IFA, the fund management has the obligation to assert in court any potential damages claims belonging to the fund. Although the wording of the law does not expressly mention the role of the administrator, the latter must be considered as having succeeded the fund management and therefore being entitled to assert these claims in court. 2. The legislative history of the law shows that the legislator deliberately refrained from providing for a unit-holders' meeting and a common representative of the investors, but this does not mean that it also intended to exclude the administrator's right to take legal action. The administrator, as a public supervisory body, has the mission of defending the interests of the investors, which includes the right to take legal action against those responsible for…