Recent Developments

On November 21, 2023, the Legal Times reported a litigation victory of Lee & Ko. In a case brought by three Homeplus store employees, including Mr. A and others, who filed a lawsuit against the company (Case No. 2022Gadan215177), demanding payment of holiday work allowances for working on public holidays and Sundays. The court ruled that Homeplus's practice of granting weekday time off for working on public holidays and Sundays to employees is valid. Lee & Ko represented Homeplus in the case.

November 16, 2023 - ChosunBiz
On November 16, 2023, Chosun Biz featured a comment from Mr. Ko Hwan Kyoung, a partner at Lee & Ko. As increasingly sophisticated AI technologies are being integrated into South Korea’s main export products, such as semiconductors, smartphones, and automobiles, raising the likelihood of falling under US and EU regulatory laws, Mr. Ko noted, “In the case of EU legislation, complying with all the obligations would require significant time and cost for the companies utilizing these technologies,” and added, “The need for localization has become even more crucial.”

On November 15, 2023, the Law Times reported that Lee & Ko earned awards in 7 categories at the ALB Korea Law Awards 2023. According to the article, the firm was recognized as the ‘Law Firm of the Year’ in the litigation and regulatory & compliance categories, and in the individual categories, Frank S. Shyn of the Antitrust & Competition Group at Lee & Ko received the title of the ‘Foreign Lawyer of the Year,’ while Ji Hyeong Park of the General Corporate Practice Group was honored as the ‘Young Lawyer of the Year.’ In deal-related categories, the firm showcased its prowess, securing recognition in 3 categories with the titles of ‘Stock Market Deal of the Year,’ ‘M&A Deal of the Year,’ and ‘TMT Deal of the Year.’ 

On November 14, 2023, Legal Times highlighted the performance and achievements of Lee & Ko for the year. The article evaluated Lee & Ko as “a solid runner-up next to Kim & Chang in legal services in terms of gross revenue and the number of lawyers,” and further noted that “the firm has consistently demonstrated strong performance throughout 2023, while earning outstanding recognition from global news outlets. Described as a ‘dual powerhouse’ alongside with Kim & Chang, Lee & Ko has reportedly excelled across all practice areas, including M&A and finance, intellectual property, tax, antitrust, and labor, as well as in litigation, criminal and international arbitration cases.”

On October 12, 2023, the Korea Economic Daily reported on the launch of the Economic Security Task Force (T/F) at Lee & Ko. The T/F will advise global companies on how to respond to various risks they face due to geopolitical unrest around the world. Leveraging decades of legal expertise and global presence of Lee & Ko, the T/F will empower global companies to navigate the complexities of geopolitical dynamics and make informed decisions in an ever-changing world. Lee & Ko’s dedicated team of experts will provide comprehensive analysis, risk assessment, and tailored strategies to help businesses anticipate and respond to geopolitical challenges. Lee & Ko will reinforce a network with international organizations, government agencies, think tanks, and law firms in major cities around the world, including Washington, D.C., Brussels, Geneva, and Beijing to preemptively identify and analyze the economic security measures of major countries. "Korean companies are facing challenges that they have never experienced before in terms of economic security," said Mr. Sang Gon KIM, Managing Partner of Lee & Ko, "and the Economic Security T/F will serve as a compass for the companies when doing business overseas."

2023.10.10 Jose Ilbo reported that the law firm Lee & Ko is hosting an M&A forum scheduled for October 19th at 2:00 PM. The event will take place in the Lilac Room on the 2nd floor of the Westin Josun Hotel, located in Jung-gu, Seoul, and is intended for personnel from domestic corporations and other related individuals. During the forum, Lee & Ko's lawyers Sung Min Kim and Jihye Park will present on the topic of "Practical Issues Related to Representations and Warranties in M&A Contracts." Additionally, lawyers Seung Hwan Lee and Hyoung Geun Hong will discuss "Reconsidering Tender Offers – Utilization in M&A and Key Issues." Hyun Tae Kim, the Managing Partner leading Lee & Ko's Corporate Group, commented, "This M&A Forum provides Lee & Ko, a leading group of experts in the domestic M&A market, with the opportunity to give back to our clients and share our expertise with M&A practitioners. We hope that it will be a meaningful and informative experience for everyone involved." 

On September 25, 2023, Financial News reported on an article published by Hyun Koo Kang of Lee & Ko.  Hyun Koo Kang, Co-Head of the Digital Finance Team at Lee & Ko, published an article titled "Review of Major Issues and Improvements in Practice Related to STOs" in Volume 24, Issue 2 of the Securities Law Review published in August.  The article discussed major legal issues and improvements in practice related to security token offerings (STOs), which are the issuance and distribution of tokens that have characteristics of a security.

On September 25, 2023, The Bell published an interview with Jun Woo Cho of Lee & Ko.  "Jun Woo Cho is a capital markets lawyer and has been practicing for over 13 years since joining Lee & Ko in 2010.  He is the head of its IPO advisory practice," said The Bell.  Mr. Cho cited Samsung Biologics’s listing on the Korean Securities Market as his most memorable IPO, saying, "It was a lot of work, but it was also a great opportunity to learn."

September 20, 2023 - In an announcement featured in Law Times, Ju Bong Jang, a partner at Lee & Ko, has been recognized as one of 'ALB's Asia Top 15 TMT Lawyers' for the year. This prestigious accolade, awarded by Asian Legal Business (ALB), highlights Attorney Jang’s exceptional expertise in the Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) field. With over two decades of experience in TMT, Attorney Jang has demonstrated his capabilities in areas such as IT, broadcasting, telecommunications, data privacy, consumer disputes, mergers and acquisitions, and general corporate matters.

The Korea Herald Business reported on 18 September 2023 that Mr Yoo, an attorney of Lee & Ko, won the cross examination contest of the Remote Oral Advocacy Programme (ROAP) Asia 2023.  ROAP Asia is an advocacy competition for young and junior international arbitration practitioners in the Asia-Pacific region, and Mr Yoo is the first Korean attorney to win the cross examination contest.  Mr Yoo joined Lee & Ko’s international arbitration team in 2019.  He acts for clients in international construction and commercial arbitrations, and also advises on the enforcement and recognition of arbitral awards.

On September 17, 2023, the Seoul Economic Daily published an opinion column contributed by Hwan Kyoung Ko, an attorney at Lee & Ko. Mr. Ko noted in the column that “the comprehensive amendment to the Personal Information Protection Act came into effect on September 15,” and opined that “it is the first major overhaul since its enactment in September 2011.” He further elaborated on its contents, explaining that “as the amendment is extensive and contains many items that require attention in practical terms, personal information controllers need to carefully check them.”

NTN Daily published court decision analysis by Sung Hyun Ryu at Lee & Ko. Mr. Ryu explained in detail that the Supreme Court Ruling 2018Du41327 dated June 29th, 2023 ruled that ‘indirect profits earned by shareholder of the corporation due to increase in property value are subject to gift tax’.