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Bae, Kim & Lee LLC

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC

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South Korea

2

International arbitration

Under the leadership of Tony Dongwook Kang and Woojae Kim, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC‘s arbitration bench has further strengthened by hires, including Christopher Mainwaring-Taylor, an experienced English-qualified solicitor, from A&O Shearman where he was a partner for over a decade. Kim has a strong track record in investor-state disputes. Junu Kim has extensive experience in investment arbitrations, while Hongjoong Kim has represented clients in international disputes across various industries. Dual-qualified in England and Wales and in New York, Yoon Jeong Park is a key practitioner on disputes relating to the shipping and shipbuilding industry.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘Woojae Kim, Junu Kim, and Hongjoong Kim are the backbone of this team and its main leaders and also three of the hardest working lawyers in the business.’
  • ‘Throughout our engagement, we received high-quality legal services across multiple areas, with a level of professionalism, expertise, and responsiveness that was truly impressive.’
  • ‘Mr. Sangchul Kim provided invaluable support in connection with my company’s long-term arbitration matter. His deep knowledge of arbitration procedures, combined with his strategic insight and calm, professional demeanor, gave us great confidence throughout the process.’
  • ‘Bae, Kim & Lee’s international arbitration team is highly experienced and trusted, particularly in investor-state disputes. They combine deep legal knowledge with a practical understanding of government concerns.’
  • ‘Junu Kim is the standout partner at BKL. He is exceptionally smart, with deep expertise in Korean law and arbitration. His calm demeanor and strategic insight make him a reliable guide and a key asset in achieving successful outcomes. ’
  • ‘Yoon Jeong Park is friendly and very pleasant to work with. She is always very willing to accommodate client’s needs. She has a good insight into factually and legally complex cases and she is spoken highly from various persons she work with, including clients as well as English solicitors and barristers. I understand that she has a very high success rate in winning arbitrations.’

Key clients

  • Affinity Equity Partners Pte. Ltd. IMM Private Equity, Inc. Baring Private Equity Asia (now known as EQT Private Capital Asia) GIC Private Limited Republic of Korea Dongbu Corporation Actoz Soft Co., Ltd. Nibec Co., Ltd. Genexine, Inc Wonik PNE Co., Ltd

Work highlights

Advised a consortium of financial investors in a high-profile ICC arbitration against the chairman of Kyobo Life Insurance, securing a landmark partial award enforcing specific performance and financial penalties under Korean law.
Advised the Republic of Korea, alongside Arnold & Porter, in the ICSID annulment proceeding of a USD 216.5 million award, following its successful defense in Korea’s first-ever investor-state arbitration, which dismissed 95% of the USD 4.4 billion claim by Lone Star.
Advised the Republic of Korea in an ad-hoc investor-state arbitration under the EFTA-Korea Investment Agreement, defending against Schindler Holdings’ claims arising from regulatory actions related to Hyundai Elevator.

Lawyers

Leading partners

The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.

Practice head

Tony Dongwook Kang; Woojae Kim

Other key lawyers

Junu Kim; Hongjoong Kim; Yoon Jeong Park; Chris Mainwaring Taylor; Hangil Lee; Sangchul Kim

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