The Legal 500

Within Antitrust and competition, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Headed by Keum Seok Oh, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s three-partner team is a regular presence before the KFTC, acting for an international client base. Highlights for 2010 included representing several airlines in the air cargo cartel investigation, and acting for Korea Midland Power in a KFTC investigation into abuse of market dominance by five major electricity companies in Korea.

Within Banking and finance, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s finance practice acted for WiniaMando Inc in refinancing and restructuring $106m/KRW40bn dual currency facilities, and for KEXIM on restructuring several of Mediterranean Shipping Company’s ship finance facilities. Eui Jong Chung heads the practice, which was recently joined by Seung Hwa Hwang from Jipyong & Jisung.

Within Capital markets, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is ‘superb in all aspects’, with clients reporting ‘great satisfaction with the level of legal support’. Headed by the ‘profoundly knowledgeable’ Eui Jong Chung, the team acted for Korea Exchange Bank in the KRW112bn block sale of common shares in Hynix Semiconductor, while debt highlights included acting for KEPCO in a successful offering of $700m senior unsecured 3.0% notes. Hee Gang Shin and Young-Mo Kim stand out, and were joined by Seung Hwa Hwang from Jipyong & Jisung.

Within Corporate and M&A, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is ‘good on response times, Korean laws and practices, and legal due diligence’. 2010 highlights included acting for Lotte Group in its $130m acquisition of a majority stake in Lucky Pai Limited, the Cayman Islands holding company for the Lucky Pai network of home shopping channels. Ri Bong Han leads a 15-partner team that includes Byoung Ki Lee, who is ‘very hardworking’, and ‘dedicated, experienced’ associate Oh Ryung Lee.

Within Dispute resolution, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a first tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s contentious practice operates ‘at the top level’. Kap-You Kim and John Bang handle international disputes, including patent cases and arbitration matters, and represented Hyundai Heavy Industries in a successful ICC arbitration against IPIC. Young Bo Noh heads the domestic litigation team, which acted for the creditors of Samsung Motors Co in obtaining a $531m damages award, the accrued interest from the 1999 debt restructuring of Samsung Motors.

Within Employment, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a first tier firm,

Highlights for Jeong Han Lee’s employment team at Bae, Kim & Lee LLC included obtaining favourable results for the National Agricultural Co-operative Federation in fixed-term employment termination cases; and advising a number of clients on negotiations for collective bargaining with trade unions.

Within Insurance, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC handles both transactional and contentious insurance matters for a prominent list of Korean and international insurers. Highlights included acting for Prudential Corporation Asia in its share acquisition of AIA, and for LIG Insurance in defending a KRW20bn claim by an owner of a warehouse in Incheon that caught fire, causing the death of 40 people. Hoo Dong Lee heads the practice.

Within Intellectual property, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Headed by Hoo Dong Lee, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s IP practice acted for POSCO Power in a multimillion-dollar technology transfer and licence agreement, and successfully defended LG Chemical in a case concerning allegations of trade secret violations. It also handles privacy, franchise and entertainment-related cases.

Within Intellectual property: patents and trade marks, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s IP practice provides patent registration, prosecution, litigation and enforcement advice to the likes of LG Chemical and POSCO Power. It acted for the latter in a complex, multimillion-dollar transfer of patents, and for Symphony 3D Technology on patent valuation and transfers/assignments related to its acquisition of a Korean company. Hoo Dong Lee leads the team.

Within Legal market overview,

Kim & Chang, Shin & Kim, Lee & Ko, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC and Yulchon are the major domestic firms.

Within Projects and energy, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a first tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC has a team of ‘distinguished professionals’ who are ‘helpful in all aspects, from a commercial and legal perspective’. Highlights included acting for KEPCO in the successful formation of a joint venture with German engineering firm Uhde GmbH, with the aim of developing and engineering a series of power plants using high-efficiency coal gasification technology. Joonki Yi heads the team, and Hee Gang Shin has ‘excellent negotiating skills’.

Within Real estate, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC’s team has expanded at associate level, offsetting the departure of Eun Jin Jeon, and foreign legal consultant Sangmoon Chang, who took up an in-house position at IBM Korea. Highlights for the team included advising Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co in its joint venture with an American real estate investment company to jointly develop a multi-purpose complex in New Songdo City. Sung Jin Kim heads the team.

Within TMT, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

Highlights for Bae, Kim & Lee LLC included advising Sejong Telecom in its acquisition of a 39% stake in Onse Telecom for KRW19.5bn. Kwang Hyun Ryoo heads the team, which was joined by Jae Min Shin from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Within Tax, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is a second tier firm,

At Bae, Kim & Lee LLC, Wee Soo Han and Keonho Lee lead a six-partner team of ‘technically gifted’ tax specialists. In 2010, it acted for global drinks company Diageo in an appeal against the Seoul Customs Office’s decision to reject the transaction value of imported goods due to the influence of related-party transactions on the price. It has recently expanded its team with a number of hires from government bodies.