Joanna
Didisheim
Associate
Geneva
Member of the Geneva Bar
Expertise
Cross-border litigation
Fraud & White-collar crime
Asset recovery
Enforcement
Professional background
Practiced litigation at LALIVE in Geneva
Served as a legal trainee at the Embassy of Switzerland in the United States
Education
Certificate of Advanced Studies in Legal Professions from the University of Geneva, 2018
King’s College London (LL.M. in international dispute resolution), 2017
Master of Law from the University of Zurich, 2017
Bachelor of Law from the University of Lausanne, 2015
Languages
French
English
German
Professional affiliations
Admitted to the Geneva bar, 2020
Joanna’s practice centers on complex litigation, with particular expertise in white-collar crime, enforcement of foreign judgments, and asset recovery.

Joanna is a Geneva-based lawyer with extensive experience handling high-stakes cases, often involving significant cross-border elements. She represents clients in international fraud cases, cryptocurrency-related financial crimes, matters involving politically exposed persons (PEPs), and disputes concerning the enforcement of economic sanctions.

Her expertise includes navigating complex international legal frameworks and working closely with stakeholders across multiple jurisdictions. She develops strategies for her clients in civil and criminal matters, as well as in international mutual legal assistance.
Full bio
Details of recent activities
Recently, she:

Secured a billion-dollar judgment for a sovereign-wealth fund in the context of one of the largest frauds in the 21st Century

Acted to recover Swiss-located assets in a large-scale management fraud against a large multinational company, involving misappropriation in several jurisdictions and advising on international civil and criminal assistance

Represented a high-net-worth individual in proceedings against a Geneva bank and a former banker involved in a large scale fraud and illicit securities transactions

Advised a European company formerly controlled by PEPs, in relation to a high-profile fraud at the expense of public assets

Enforced a Middle Eastern judgment in Switzerland for a foreign bank, securing recovery from the debtor’s accounts and those of a family member

Represented a private individual against a Swiss bank in relation to US OFAC sanctions

Advised the liquidators of a former crypto trading exchange platform on matters involving management fraud and money laundering through a Swiss-based decentralized cryptocurrency (DeFi) platform

Acted for several China-based clients to enforce Chinese judgments in Switzerland, recovering funds dissipated by a Chinese national

Obtained the recognition in Switzerland of the bankruptcy of foreign companies used to embezzle funds from a state investment fund, enabling the successful retrieval of bank records to trace stolen assets

Advised victims of cryptocurrency fraud on recovering defrauded assets through criminal proceedings and international mutual legal assistance
Full bio
Publications
Swiss government to shine a light on greenwashing, with Nicolas Ollivier, Lexology (online) 2022

Business and human rights: Swiss companies face new due diligence obligations, with Sandrine Giroud, Warren Martin, and Anton Vallélian, Lexology (online) 2021

Corporate cross-border corruption sanctioned in Switzerland, with Benoît Mauron, Lexology (online) 2021

The Cum-Ex tax scandal – a fraud on the investor?, with Nicolas Ollivier, IBA Banking Law Committee 2021

Joanna Didisheim, Déterminisme et Responsabilité Pénale: Inconciliables?, sui-generis 2017