Peter & Kim > Sydney, Australia > Firm Profile

Peter & Kim > Firm Profile

Peter & Kim is a specialist arbitration and disputes firm, based in Switzerland, South Korea, Singapore and Australia. The firm was established in 2019 under the joint leadership of Wolfgang Peter and Kap-You (Kevin) Kim. The firm is staffed by some of the world’s leading arbitration advocates and arbitrators, working together with a diverse set of skilful lawyers qualified in nine jurisdictions (and multiple US states), and fluent in over 17 languages. Since its inception, the firm has leveraged its unique expertise and networks in Europe and in the Asia-Pacific region to develop a truly global practice.

Peter & Kim shows a proven track record of successfully representing corporate, sovereign and private clients across the globe in complex cross-border cases before arbitral tribunals and state courts. The firm adopts a commercially minded, fact-driven approach and handles the full spectrum of international disputes, including both commercial and investor state matters, like M&A contracts, international construction and engineering projects, energy disputes, resources sector (mining and off-shore extraction), sports-related disputes, distribution and agency agreements, franchising and licensing contracts, joint venture agreements, commodities transactions, long-term supply contracts and foreign investment to name a few.

Relying on the depth and diversity of its lawyers, Peter & Kim can assemble bespoke teams combining different legal and industry knowledge as well as languages to meet the specific needs of its clients while being always accessible due to the close cooperation between offices. The presence of renowned arbitrators in the firm allows Peter & Kim to rely on their experience and expertise for strategy and advocacy.

All lawyers of the firm have practical experience working with the procedural and substantive laws of most popular arbitration seats, as well as the rules of all major arbitral institutions, such as the ICC, SIAC, HKIAC, ICSID, LCIA, AAA/ ICDR, UNCITRAL, VIAC, SCC, ACICA, CIETAC, KCAB, CAS, CIAC and JCAA. Partners of Peter & Kim sit on the boards of many such institutions and have intimate knowledge of their procedures.

The firm supports and represents clients throughout all stages of a dispute, from initial advice on navigating the dispute resolution process, through to pre-arbitration negotiations, dealing with interim measures of protection, drafting written submissions, advocacy at hearings, post-award challenges and asset recovery.

Peter & Kim represents clients in setting aside and enforcement proceedings in multiple jurisdictions, especially before the Swiss local courts and the Swiss Federal Tribunal (Supreme Court) and at all levels of the Korean court system. It also assists clients in cross-border litigation and is particularly adept in assisting clients from civil law jurisdictions (such as Korea) in litigation in common law jurisdictions (such as the United States of America).

Managing partners: Wolfgang Peter and Kevin Kim
Number of partners: 13
Number of lawyers: 40
Languages: 17 (English, Korean, German, French, Russian, Ukrainian, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Romanian, Hungarian, Mandarin, Hindi, Japanese, Punjabi, Greek, and Urdu)

Main industries

• Automotive and heavy industry
• Banks and financial services
• Commodities transactions
• Energy foreign investment
• Insurance
• International construction and engineering projects
• Pharmaceuticals and life sciences
• Resources and mining
• Sports and E-sports
• Software, video games and online games
• Web 3.0, Blockchain, cryptocurrencies and NFT
• International events, hosting and ticketing
• Showbusiness, art and fashion
• Media, social media and broadcasting

Main areas of practice

• Commercial contracts and international transactions
• International sales and trade
• Distribution and agency agreements
• Franchising and licensing contracts
• Sponsorship and investors agreements
• Long-term supply contracts
• Government-related projects
• Joint venture and consortia agreements
• Corporate law and shareholder agreements
• M&A contracts
• Intellectual property
• International tax
• Project finance

Representative cases:

■ Counsel for Korea-based Mirae Asset in relation to the cancellation of a $5.8bn acquisition of 15 US luxury hotels from a Chinese insurance company. Defended Mirae Asset, Buyer, in a Delaware Chancery court litigation and secured a 100% win for Mirae Asset within seven months from the commencement of the proceedings.

■ Counsel in a long-running ad hoc arbitration between a state-owned enterprise and a sovereign state in the oil sector, involving aspects of public international law; the amount in dispute runs to several billion US dollars.

■ Counsel in an ICSID arbitration against an Asian state on behalf of an investor from Singapore with amount in dispute of several billion dollars.

■ Counsel representing a seller in a in an ongoing ad hoc gas purchase dispute in the Middle East; the amount in dispute is over US$30 bn.

■ Counsel in an ICC arbitration seated in Singapore for one of Korea’s largest construction companies concerning the development and financing of a US$35bn business district project in Korea. The value of the dispute exceeds US$2bn.

■ Counsel in an ICSID arbitration under the Korea – Belgium/ Luxembourg BIT, involving a claim against the Government of Korea in the aggregate amount of over US$5bn.

■ Counsel in the second known ICSID arbitration brought against the People’s Republic of China. The dispute related to a Korean company’s investment in the construction of a golf country club and condominiums in Sheyang-Xiam, Jiangsu province.

■ Counsel in setting aside proceedings in Australia and enforcement proceedings in Singapore in relation to a SIAC award concerning a high-profile infrastructure project in Australia.

■ Counsel in an ICC arbitration between a Central Asian mining conglomerate and a contractor, with more than US$500m in dispute.

■ Counsel in an LCIA arbitration seated in London, arising from a dispute regarding the procurement, construction and commissioning of the first nuclear power station in the United Arab Emirates. The value of this dispute exceeds US$500m.

■ Counsel in an ICC arbitration subject to Swiss law, concerning a failed joint venture in a Middle Eastern country, which involved military and public procurement contracts. The amount in dispute US$60m.

■ Counsel in a SIAC arbitration seated in Singapore, involving a dispute relating to manufacture and sale of structural steel for use in the construction of a large-scale civil engineering project in Sydney, Australia, with an amount in dispute over US$50m.

■ Counsel in an ICC arbitration involving a construction of a bridge in a CIS country, with an amount in dispute over US$80m, including successful defense of the award before the Swiss Supreme Court.

■ Counsel in a Swiss Rules arbitration stemming from the agricultural sector, with US$70m in dispute.

Key clients: Past and former clients include Hyundai Group entities, Engie, Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), Eurasian Resources Group, POSCO Group entities, Republic of Korea, Doğuş Construction and Trade Inc., SAP Korea, Mirae Asset Financial Group.

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