Overseas Regulation and Litigation 'One Pick'... Law Firms Focus on Selection and Concentration

Main Focus Areas for the Six Major Law Firms in the New Year

Seeking Breakthroughs Amid Trump's Second Term and Recession

Kim & Chang Strengthens Legal Tech Sector

Lee & Ko Focuses on Criminal Trials and Financial Regulation

Yulchon LLC Concentrates on IRA and Tariff Issues

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC Eyes Restructuring and M&A

Shin & Kim and HwaHyun Foster New Industries like AI

The six major law firms in Korea have finalized their main focus areas for the new year. Economic recession and U.S. protectionist trade were key topics. Accordingly, large law firms plan to improve their performance by focusing on corporate restructuring consulting and responding to overseas regulations. They also foresee an increase in demand for consulting in new industries such as virtual assets, artificial intelligence (AI), healthcare, and personal information, in preparation for digital transformation and industrial restructuring.

Targeting New Industries and Restructuring

According to the legal community on the 12th, Kim & Chang has decided to focus on compliance and Legal Tech. They are strengthening internal control consulting for not only the banking sector but also general corporations, and are paying attention to the trade sector in preparation for the protectionist policies of the second Trump administration. CEO Kyung-Sung Jung stated, "Internally, we plan to focus on building a Legal Tech system utilizing AI."

Lee & Ko aims to continue its achievements in the fields of criminal trials and financial regulation. CEO Sang-Gon Kim said, "Last year, the criminal trial team led growth by taking on major corporate-related cases," and "the financial regulation team also achieved remarkable results in responding to financial authority investigations." Lee & Ko is strengthening its litigation capabilities by hiring four more lawyers from the judiciary this year, while also aiming to secure demand for consulting on energy company restructuring.

Bae, Kim & Lee LLC is also paying attention to the demand for mergers and acquisitions related to restructuring. CEO Jun-Ki Lee predicted, "With the demand for corporate restructuring, the demand for consulting in new industries such as virtual assets and personal information will increase."

Yulchon LLC focuses on responding to overseas regulations and management rights disputes. CEO Seok-Hoon Kang emphasized, "We will concentrate our capabilities on overseas regulatory work such as the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), tariffs, and trade regulations," and "we will also establish a corporate governance team related to management rights disputes in preparation for a second Korea Zinc incident."

In the field of new industries, Shin & Kim is the most proactive. They have expanded and relocated their branch office in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, and more than doubled the number of resident lawyers. CEO Jong-Han Oh predicted, "The demand for legal services in new industries such as healthcare, virtual assets, and AI will surge."

HwaHyun is expanding its investment in new businesses such as AI and digital finance, as well as government relations consulting (GRC). CEO Myung-Soo Lee stated, "We plan to significantly increase investment in new businesses such as AI, digital finance, GRC, ESG (environmental, social, and governance), and the defense industry."

Emerging 'Revenue Report Card'

Despite concerns about the slowdown in growth of large law firms due to the economic recession, some firms have achieved record-breaking results. Lee & Ko achieved 410 billion won in revenue (based on National Tax Service VAT reports) last year, becoming the first law firm to surpass 400 billion won. This ranks second in the industry after Kim & Chang (estimated annual revenue of 1.3 trillion won), which is not in corporate form.

As of 2023, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC ranked third with 371.4 billion won, followed by Yulchon LLC (328.5 billion won) and Shin & Kim (319.6 billion won). Noteworthy is the growth of HwaHyun. Having joined the '200 billion club' in 2020, HwaHyun achieved 249.5 billion won in revenue last year, a 20% increase compared to 2023 (208.2 billion won). It is evaluated that significant management rights disputes and financial consulting drove this growth.

A legal industry insider analyzed, "Restructuring and responding to overseas regulations will be key keywords this year," and "securing expertise in new industries such as AI legislation and digital transformation will be a key variable for law firm growth."

Reporter Ran Heo why@hankyung.com