최근소식

On September 4, 2026, Asia Economic Daily published comments from Lee & Ko Partner attorney, Young-jin Kim. While Mr. Kim assessed that the Ministry of Employment and Labor’s decision to exclude performance-based bonuses from mandatory collective bargaining—as outlined in its recent implementation guidelines—was a measure that respected corporate operational autonomy, he also pointed out that if workforce redeployment resulting from new investments or relocations were subject to collective bargaining and labor disputes, it could act as a burden on corporate investment and business restructuring.

On September 3, 2026, DailyPharm reported that Lee & Ko launched the “Inaugural Lee & Ko MA Academy,” a training program designed to enhance the expertise of pricing and market access (MA) practitioners in the pharmaceutical industry. Starting with its first lecture on September 2, Lee & Ko is offering a six-session course covering key regulatory frameworks and practical issues relating to drug pricing and MA in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors. The opening lecture, titled “A One-Stop Guide to New Drug Listing Regulations,” was delivered by Sungju Kim, a Senior In-House Advisor at Lee & Ko. 

On August 24, 2026, the Weekly Korea Housing Economy News reported on a lecture delivered by Sung Min Yoon, an attorney at Lee & Ko. At the 20th session of the 10th Urban Redevelopment Practice Academy, held on August 20 by the newspaper’s Continuing Education Institute, Mr. Yoon gave a lecture entitled “Legal Disputes and Criminal Penalties Relating to Urban Redevelopment Projects,” in which he discussed, among other topics, the key types of violations under the Act on the Improvement of Urban Areas and Residential Environments and recent court decisions.

On July 8, 2026, Money Today reported on Lee & Ko’s recognition at the Asia-Pacific Awards 2026, hosted by Benchmark Litigation, a world-renowned publication known for its rankings in dispute resolution and litigation. Lee & Ko earned honors across five categories, including Labour and Employment Firm of the Year, South Korea Lawyer of the Year, and Client Choice – South Korea Firm of the Year, cementing its position as the most-awarded law firm in Korea.

July 8, 2026
Attorney Hyoung Geun Hong of Lee & Ko has been named as one of the "Best Lawyers of the First Half of 2026" selected by Seoul Economic Daily Signal. Seoul Economic Daily emphasized, “Hyoung Geun Hong is a go-to advisor behind major M&A transactions involving Korea's leading conglomerates, having led deals such as LG Chem's sale of its Water Solutions business and CJ Freshway's acquisition of Marketboro. 

On July 6, 2026, News1 featured an interview with Lee & Ko attorney Seok Pyo Hong, describing him as a distinguished professional specializing in insolvency and rehabilitation who has also dedicated himself to pro bono activities for 16 years since entering practice. The article highlighted two landmark cases that reflect his commitment: securing the first-ever ruling recognizing a member of the so-called “A-Frame Carrier Corps” under the Korean Service Corps (KSC) as a veteran and obtaining a precedent-setting decision in which a Korean court, for the first time, acknowledged the practice of “recycling,” the repeated re-arrest of Egyptian refugees.

July 4, 2026 
Attorney Tae Joo Kim of Lee & Ko was featured in Money Today. In the article, Kim discussed publicity rights during an appearance on the YouTube channel DouzoneTV, explaining, “The right to commercially use an individual's identifying attributes—such as their name, image, or voice—is known as the 'right of publicity.' It gives individuals, particularly celebrities, the exclusive right to authorize the commercial use of their identity. While the concept is not yet widely known, Korean law recognizes and protects these rights. Accordingly, fabricated advertisements that exploit a celebrity's name or likeness without authorization may constitute an infringement of the right of publicity."

June 30, 2026
Yonhap Infomax reported that Lee & Ko ranked second in the legal advisory market for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the first half of 2026, recording deals worth KRW 15.2443 trillion. According to Yonhap Infomax, the firm's performance was largely driven by advising the French company, Air Liquide, in its acquisition of DIG Airgas. It added that Lee & Ko further boosted its deal value by advising the seller in EQT Partners' acquisition of a stake in Douzone Bizon and the buyer in SK Gas' transfer of shares in Ulsan GPS.

June 30, 2026
An interview with Ho Joon Moon, Managing Partner of Lee & Ko who leads the firm’s M&A group, was featured in EDAILY. It noted, “Throughout Lee & Ko's history, the firm has pioneered innovative transaction structures that later became market standards, citing LG Group's holding company conversion and the acquisition of Osstem Implant as examples.” Mr. Moon highlighted the firm's competitive strength in its accumulated team-based expertise and its ability to establish new precedents. He also projected that, despite growing uncertainty in the M&A market due to regulatory changes such as proposed amendments to the Commercial Act, new deal opportunities will continue to emerge.

On June 29, 2026, comments by Yoon Seong-min, an attorney at Lee & Ko, were featured in the Weekly Korea Housing Economic News. Following a court ruling that held a resident liable for nearly 100 million won in damages for defamation after raising unsubstantiated rebate allegations during an urban renewal project, Attorney Yoon stated, "This judgment clarifies that while monitoring and criticism during the urban renewal process should be respected, spreading false information without basis entails legal responsibility." He added, "This is a significant ruling that serves as a wake-up call against the repeated, indiscriminate raising of suspicions at urban renewal sites."

On June 21, 2026, the Korea Economic Daily reported that "as a large-scale fair trade investigation unit is expected to be established within the newly created investigation agency against serious crimes, major law firms are simultaneously expanding their competition law team organizations," introducing Lee & Ko's Antitrust and Competition Group as one such example. The Korea Economic noted that "Lee & Ko has reinforced its 'former official lineup' by recruiting Attorney Giusung Oh this month — a former judge who also served as a Non-Standing Commissioner of the KFTC — following the recruitment of Attorney Min-Ho Lee, a former KFTC official, earlier this year."

On June 10, 2026, Edaily reported the news of Attorney Giusung Oh joining Lee & Ko. With the addition of Attorney Giusung Oh, former General Counsel and Non-Standing Commissioner of the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC), Lee & Ko is now able to provide more sophisticated and substantive legal services to businesses amid an increasingly complex government regulatory environment and a strengthened fair trade order.