Duty to cooperate

Swiss civil procedure is adversarial in many respects, but parties must cooperate in the taking of evidence and in clarifying facts when the procedural rules so require. This may include appearing, answering questions, producing documents or tolerating inspections. Third persons can also have limited duties to assist. The duty is balanced against rights to refuse cooperation, professional secrecy, confidentiality and the privilege against self-incrimination. If a party unjustifiably refuses to cooperate, the court may take that conduct into account when assessing the evidence.