The Global Arbitration Review, an international arbitration journal for specialists, introduced Lee & Ko’s Legato Choir and International Arbitration Team in its March 22, 2011 edition. The Legato Choir is a choir group consisting of various attorneys and staff members of Lee & Ko. The article introduced in detail each of the members of Legato Choir and described the history behind the formation of Legato Choir. It also mentioned that Legato Choir is not only a good marketing means, but also furthers the cooperation and harmony among members of the Dispute Group. The article also provided a detailed introduction to the achievements of Lee & Ko’s international arbitration team including its representation in Korea Electric Power v. Framatome (concerning the construction of a nuclear power plant), the first International Chamber of Commerce case held in Korea. Finally, the article also described the keynote speech given by Sungwoo Lim, a partner in Lee & Ko’s International Arbitration Team, at the IBA Arbitration Day event recently held in Seoul.
TUESDAY, 22 MARCH 2011 Global Arbitration Review
Sing, choir of arbitration lawyers
ALISON ROSS
Korean law firm Lee & Ko says a choir founded by its music-loving head of international arbitration has increased harmony and cooperation within the disputes group and provided a novel marketing tool
Sungwoo (Sean) Lim, who is secretary general of the Asia Pacific Regional Arbitration Group, founded the 'Legato' in 2003 and is the choir's conductor. In musical notation the Italian word legato – literally 'tied together' – indicates that musical notes are played smoothly with no silence between notes. 'I chose the name because it represents Lee & Ko's cooperative work ethic,' Lim explains.
As well as a lawyer, Lim is a cellist who has conducted amateur and church choirs and orchestras for over 20 years. His choir comprises 50 members in all, including four other members of the international arbitration group, Min Ho Lee, Justine Maeng, Julie Cha and Ji Hye Kim. Eighteen members belong to the wider dispute resolution group and the choir also includes support staff and family members. Finance partner So Young Lee, who studied as a professional pianist before she became a lawyer, accompanies the choir on the piano.
Appropriately, the choir has an international focus - its repertoire includes traditional and contemporary Korean music, American gospel and British, Swedish and Japanese chorale. It is currently rehearsing a Finnish piece. 'If we are unable to find scores for rare songs in Korea, we create scores with assistance from professional musicians,' Lim says.
The choir holds two or three concerts a year, requiring regular lunch hour rehearsals. New songs are distributed to choir members in MP3 files so that they can learn them in their spare time.
Each year the choir performs for the firm at New Year and leads the other lawyers in an energetic singalong – something choir member and international arbitration practitioner Min Ho Lee describes as a 'great bonding experience and one of the proud traditions of Lee & Ko'. It has also performed publicly – for example alongside the Sookmyung Women's University Chamber Orchestra at an event to celebrate the anniversary of Mozart's birth in 2007. Sean Lim explained the pieces to the student audience in a Mozart wig.
Recently, the choir has obtained some fame in Korea after being featured in Korean newspaper Joongang Sunday when it performed alongside some famous Korean opera singers at the firm's latest New Year celebrations.
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