Giovanna Montanaro

Wartmann Merker Ltd

Zurich www.wartmann-merker.ch

g.montanaro@wartmann-merker.ch Tel: +41 44 212 10 11

Biography

Giovanna Montanaro is a partner with Wartmann Merker in Zurich. She has long-standing and extensive experience in international trade and transport, as well as in insurance matters, and advises clients in relation to both contentious and non-contentious matters. Giovanna Montanaro represents clients before state courts and arbitral tribunals in domestic and cross-border disputes and advises on drafting and negotiating agreements in her field of expertise, including maritime, aviation and insurance law.

What inspired you to pursue a legal career?

Since I was a teenager I have had the desire to study law or medicine and one may call it destiny which made me choose between my ever-present interest in medicine and law. An accident made my decision easy: after operations, hospitalisation and walking on crutches, I had lost the desire to pursue a medical career. I completed my law degree and continued until I specialised as a transport and insurance lawyer: a choice I have never regretted.

What do clients look for in an effective transport lawyer?

A client expects that a transport lawyer is familiar with the industry and has in-depth knowledge of the business to solve the legal issues in a cost-efficient way. A transport lawyer needs to be internationally well connected to address the cross-border issues that regularly arise and provide strategic and well-structured advice. Responsiveness and clear communication are key in a dynamic and often time-critical business environment.

What is the most memorable case that you have advised on, and why?

The most memorable case I was involved with was the mid-air collision of two aircrafts over Überlingen (Germany). On the night of 1 July 2002, a Boeing 757 on a cargo flight from Bergamo to Brussels collided with a Tupolev Tu154 on a passenger flight from Moscow to Barcelona. All 71 passengers and crew members died, 49 of them children. What distinguished the case were the layers of challenging facets that had to be taken into account when developing the strategy to solve the case: human tragedy, considerable media attention, political implications, high legal complexity with multiple crossborder issues and different stakeholders to deal with.

How has aviation and shipping practice evolved since you first began your career?

My aviation and shipping practice has evolved hand in hand with the needs and developments of the industry. To name a few of many aspects: when I started my practice more than 20 years ago, trade and transport were paper-based transactions. Nowadays, where the regulatory framework allows, the industry is moving toward paperless trading. Switzerland, for instance, has recently adopted a law that allows to issue a document of title (eg, bill of lading) in the form of ledger-based securities. Further, the keywords justin-time delivery and 3PL or 4PL service provider did not exist when I began as a lawyer but very much reflect today’s reality of the supply chain management, which aims to plan, control and optimise not only the flow of goods but also of information, money and people throughout the entire value chain.

What are the greatest challenges that aviation and shipping lawyers will face in the next five years?

While driverless means of transport were considered unrealistic some years ago, autonomous and unmanned vessels, trucks or cars are widely tested and partly in regular use nowadays. Also, the commercial use of drones for cargo transport is already being tested. These new means of transport are not dreams of the future but will soon complement the logistic chain raising numerous new legal questions, such as liability issues.

What impacts do you see covid19 having on your practice and the transport sector more broadly?

The covid-19 has had a major impact on the transport sector worldwide. In the beginning, covid-19 generated a variety of new legal issues that had to be resolved quickly. But also well-known legal issues, such as the applicability of force majeure clauses to avoid liability for delay or damages caused by the different governmental measures or insurance cover issues, gained importance. By now, covid-19 has become “the new normal” and the current challenge for the transport sector is to adapt to this new reality and to anticipate possible legal implications for existing and future business with the support of its legal adviser.

What is the best piece of career advice you have received?

Just after my bar exam a group of young lawyers, including me, asked a senior partner how to become a good and successful lawyer. Among others, he told us to be ourselves and not to adapt our personality to presumed expectations of how a lawyer should be. At that time, we were all disappointed and at a loss with this piece of advice. With hindsight, I could not agree more: there are a lot of knowledgeable and service-oriented lawyers competing for clients but in the long-term it will be an authentic personality with a specific work style that will make the difference and generate client retention.