The Legal 500

On July 17, 2013, the Ministry of Justice issued an advance legislative notice of a proposed partial amendment to the Commercial Code in order to improve corporate governance. The proposed amendment is schedule to be submitted to the National Assembly in the latter half of this year after the advance notice period expires on August 25, 2013.  

Korean Constitutional Court ruled that a key provision of the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology (as established as Act No. 8062 on October 27, 2006, and before amended by Act No. 10962 on July 25, 2011, the "Industrial Technology Protection Act" or "the Act") is unconstitutional (July 25, 2013, 2011Heonba39).

Amendments to the Commercial Building Lease Protection Act (the "Act", and as amended, the "Amended Act") were promulgated on August 13, 2013.

Korean Constitutional Court ruled that a key provision of the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology (as established as Act No. 8062 on October 27, 2006, and before amended by Act No. 10962 on July 25, 2011, the "Industrial Technology Protection Act" or "the Act") is unconstitutional (July 25, 2013, 2011Heonba39).

On July 17, 2013, the Ministry of Justice issued an advance legislative notice of a proposed partial amendment to the Commercial Code in order to improve corporate governance. The proposed amendment is schedule to be submitted to the National Assembly in the latter half of this year after the advance notice period expires on August 25, 2013.  

On April 30, 2013, the National Assembly passed an amendment to the Fair Transactions in Subcontracting Act (the "Subcontracting Act") followed by amendments regarding the exclusive right of the Korea Fair Trade Commission (the "KFTC") to file criminal complaints under the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Law (the "FTL"), the Act on Fair Transactions in Large Franchise and Retail Business (the "Franchise Act") and the Subcontracting Act on June 25, 2013. Finally on July 2, 2013, amendments to the FTL (restriction of inter-affiliate deals), the Subcontracting Law (prevention of unfair subcontract transactions) and the Fair Labeling and Advertising Act (the "Labeling and Advertising Act") were passed by the National Assembly.

On May 22, 2013, the Korean National Assembly officially announced the Act on Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemical Substances (the "Korean REACH") which the National Assembly passed on April 30, 2013. The Korean REACH will take effect on January 1, 2015. Relative to the earlier version announced in February 2011, the draft bill submitted to the National Assembly in September 2012 was more lenient in its requirements. However, due to increased scrutiny arising from several highly publicized accidents involving chemical substances in recent months, a more stringent version of the Korean REACH has now been passed, which includes reporting requirement for certain products.

On February 21, 2013, the Presidential Transition Team announced the New Presidential Administration's five strategic policy areas, including 140 specific policy items. At the top of the New Presidential Administration's policy agenda is the establishment of an "employment-based creative economy" based on fair trade. In order to achieve this, the Presidential Transition Team proposed to "establish a market economy based on sound principles," by way of (i) reforming the current regulatory system under which the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act ("MRFTA") is enforced and (ii) enforcing the MRFTA in a manner that protects consumers and the economically disadvantaged.

On March 22, 2013, both the Act on Protection, etc. of Fixed-Term and Part-Time Workers and the Dispatched Workers' Act (the "Act on Protection of Non-Regular Employees") were promulgated to address discrimination against fixed-term, part-time and/or dispatched workers ("non-regular employees"). The amendments will become effective 6 months after the promulgation of the amendment.

At the end of 2012, the Ministry of Environment tested samples of untreated waste water from 60 randomly selected factories, and the results revealed that 44 of those were in violation of the Water Quality and Ecosystem Conservation Act (the "Water Quality Act"). The Ministry followed up with a second round of investigations in early 2013, testing all 318 Class 1 waste-producers (facilities are categorized into Classes 1 through 5 based on the volume of their generated waste, with Class 1 being the heaviest producers), of which 163 were found to be in violation of the Water Quality Act. These investigations evidence a change in the policy direction of the Ministry of Environment to implement stricter enforcement of the Water Quality Act as opposed to the past lax enforcement of the local municipalities.

On April 16, 2013, the Financial Services Commission ("FSC") proposed draft Regulations on the Delegation of Information Processing and IT Facilities of Financial Companies (the "Regulations"). Currently, the delegation of information processing and use of offshore IT facilities are permitted on a very limited basis pursuant to the Regulations on Delegation of Businesses of Financial Institutions.