In 1990 she was awarded the notary's diploma of the canton of Valais and in 1991 the lawyer's diploma and the bar exam of the canton of Valais. Since 1991, she has worked as a self-employed lawyer and notary with an office in Brig-Glis and from 1994 to 2006 as a part-time judge of the Federal Personnel Appeals Commission. Viola Amherd is single and lives in Brig-Glis.[1]