On December 28, 2016, the Korean Fair Trade Commission issued a steep fine against Qualcomm for antitrust violations in patent licensing and modem chip sales – a record penalty that the U.S. company will challenge in court.

South Korea has introduced various amendments to its patent and utility model laws, effective for applications filed from July 1 2007. These include new requirements for drafting detailed descriptions and claims, and the adoption of late filing of claims. The amendments also impose a duty to examine each claim on examiners and shorten designated periods, effective from July 1 2007.