South Korea > Legal market overview
The Korean legal marketplace has for many years considered opening itself up to foreign firms, and that gestation period took a crucial step towards bearing fruit with the ratification of the EU Free Trade Agreement (EU FTA) in July 2011. International firms have long played an active role in both inbound and outbound work from their offices across Southeast Asia, but the EU FTA allows European firms to establish a physical presence in South Korea. As other economies have contracted, South Korea’s has shown steady growth and, despite a slowdown in the demand for exports and manufacturing (two of South Korea’s key economic drivers), Korean conglomerates’ appetite for strategic investments and acquisitions shows no sign of abating.
Any foreign firm that chooses to establish a base in South Korea will be restricted from advising on domestic law, with foreign firms permitted to establish alliances with domestic firms from 2013 onwards, and only after a further three years have elapsed will foreign firms be permitted to hire Korean lawyers. As a result, the focus of any foreign firm entering the market will remain on the foreign transactional matters that have been their purview until now.
Domestic firms will not be resting on their laurels, however; they are keenly aware of the potential ramifications of competing side by side with international firms in the domestic sphere. Ramping up their capability in international arbitration and domestic regulatory matters has been key to many firms’ strategies, while others have looked offshore, particularly to China, to develop a foothold in other markets. The change will likely be gradual rather than dramatic, and with the US FTA still lacking ratification the opening up of the marketplace is by no means complete, but all firms are eyeing their current position in light of recent developments.
Kim & Chang, Shin & Kim, Lee & Ko, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC and Yulchon are the major domestic firms.