Personal details |
| Born |
5 June 1948 in Basel |
| Places of origin |
Basel and Huttwil (Bern) |
| Family status |
Married to Dorothee née Imboden (psychologist, psychotherapist)
3 children: David (born 1980), Matthias (born 1984), Simon (born 1986) |
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Basic and higher education |
| 1955 – 1967 |
Schooling in Basel, Type A baccalaureate (arts) |
| 1967 – 1971 |
Studies law at the Universities of Basel and Geneva |
| 1974 – 1975 |
PhD thesis on “Political Planning and Parliament” under the tutorship of Prof. J. P. Müller |
| 1976 – 1977 |
Practical training as clerk of the court; bar exam as attorney and notary in the canton of Solothurn |
| 1977 – 1979 |
Master of Laws at Harvard Law School, Cambridge, USA |
| 1983 ff. |
Various further training courses |
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Professional experience |
| 1972 – 1974 |
Junior teaching assistant at the University of Basel (Prof. P. Saladin) |
| 1980 – 1982 |
Senior teaching assistant at the Institute for Constitutional, Administrative and International Law at the University of Bern (Prof. J. P. Müller) |
| 1982 – 1989 |
Deputy Head of the Scientific Service of the Parliamentary Services, Head of the Legal Affairs Department and secretary to various National Council and Council of States committees |
| 1989 – 1992 |
Head of the Committee Service I (legal and political issues) and the Legal Affairs Service; 1989/1990 Secretary PIC-FDJP |
| 1992 – 2008 |
Secretary to the Council of States and Head of the Scientific Service, member of the Parliamentary Services management board, since 2005 Deputy Secretary General of the Federal Assembly |
| 2008 (1 June) |
Secretary General of the Federal Assembly |
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Languages |
| German |
Mother tongue |
| French |
Excellent spoken and written skills |
| English |
Excellent spoken and written skills |
| Italian |
Spoken |
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Extra-curricular activities |
| 1982 – 1984 |
Lecturer in international law at the University of Bern |
| 1987 – 1990 |
Committee member of the Regio Wohnbaugenossenschaft Bern |
| 1990 – 1994 |
Member of the board of governors of the Hinterkappelen Regional School |
| 1992 - 2009 |
Committee member of the Swiss Association of Legislation |
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Since 2006 |
Mitglied, seit 2008 Präsident des Stiftungsrates für Politikstipendien |
| Since 2006 |
Lecturer in parliamentary law at the University of Bern |
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Publications |
| Political Planning and Parliament, PhD thesis (in German), in: Helvetia Politica vol. X, Bern 1977 |
| Parliamentary Procedure – Of minor importance or more? (in German), in: Das Parlament – “Oberste Gewalt des Bundes”?, Bern 1991, pp. 183ff. |
| The Swiss Council of States, in: Role and function of the Second Chamber, European Association of Legislation, Baden Baden, 1997, pp. 57ff. |
| Commentary on Articles 149 to 152 of the Swiss Constitution (in German), in: Die schweizerische Bundesverfassung, St. Galler Kommentar, Zurich 2002, 2nd edition 2008 |
| The new Parliament Act: Guarantor of the Two-Chamber System (in German), in LeGes 2003/2 |
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Leisure interests |
| Family and friends, sport (jogging, hiking, skiing), music and art, travel |