History of the FAC

 

In the year 2000, Swiss voters approved a comprehensive reform of the judicial system designed to consolidate legal protection in Switzerland, relieve the caseload of the Federal Supreme Court (FSC) and simplify proceedings and legal recourse. These objectives were to be reached through the creation of three new federal courts of first instance, the Federal Criminal Court (FCC), the Federal Patent Court (FPC) and the Federal Administrative Court (FAC). The FCC began its activities in the spring of 2004 and the FAC in early 2007. The FAC replaced 36 federal appeals commissions and complaints boards of the Federal Departments. 

An interim report on evaluation of the new judicial system showed that the FAC contributed considerably to achieving the objectives of the judicial reform process. The quality of FAC judgments was deemed to be good.

In 2002, the Federal Assembly awarded the seat of the Federal Administrative Court to the city of St. Gallen, after which planning and construction work was started.  The Court started operating in Zollikofen near Bern in 2007 before relocating to eastern Switzerland in 2012. 

Further information

Media releases 2002 - 2006 (in German)