Dispute Resolution: White-Collar Crime | Asia-Pacific

Kim & Chang is internationally recognised as a leading white-collar criminal defence team comprising former judges and police investigators, ably supported by in-house forensic expertise. Its team has a strong track record in defending clients in government investigations. The firm handles a broad spectrum of matters, ranging from internal investigations and high-stakes criminal litigation to data privacy and cyber-hacking issues. It frequently assists global corporations, domestic conglomerates and financial institutions facing regulatory investigation or potential criminal prosecution out of its Seoul office.

Lee & Ko has a highly experienced team based in Seoul comprising experts in various white-collar crime issues, including fraud, trade secrets, bribery and antitrust. The firm frequently handles high-profile disputes across a broad range of industries such as finance, defence and healthcare, attracting specific praise for its holistic approach to and appropriate staffing of mandates. Particular strengths demonstrated by the firm include its handling of product liability cases and instances of alleged market manipulation. The firm is also increasingly involved in cybersecurity and cryptocurrency-related matters. Its key clients include Dunamu, Osstem Implant and Discovery Asset Management.

Bae, Kim & Lee enjoys an excellent reputation in the white-collar crime area, with a team composed of former prosecutors and judges. The firm handles both contentious and compliance-related mandates, has extensive experience of working with regulatory agencies, and specialises in advising both companies and individuals involved in criminal trials and internal investigations. The practice is well placed to advise on cross-jurisdictional issues thanks to an extensive network of regional offices. Bae, Kim & Lee is praised for its ready creation of robust multidisciplinary teams. It works for domestic and international corporations from a wide variety of sectors including healthcare, automotive and technology. Its key clients include KG Mobilians and Coinone.

Shin & Kim is fully equipped to represent major corporations and high-profile individuals facing prosecution for corruption, embezzlement and accounting fraud. It houses a deep bench of criminal litigation lawyers with broad experience in handling white-collar cases as well as former judges and prosecutors. The firm also handles cross-jurisdictional matters including extraditions. The team has extensive experience handling defence industry corruption cases and is also notably active in the construction, financial services, automotive, medical, pharmaceutical and real estate sectors.

Yulchon has a respected group with a full-service white-collar crime offering focusing on investigations and related disputes out of Seoul. The team specialises in advising executives of leading conglomerates in criminal investigations. Its clients benefit from the group's close coordination with the firm's tax and antitrust lawyers as well as members of the corporate team. The firm has additional expertise in antitrust, financial crime and product liability matters and in the management of internal investigations. The team of former prosecutors and judges is particularly well qualified to represent individuals in litigation and government investigations. The firm recently established a new team dedicated to police investigations, consisting of former public prosecutors and high-ranking police officers. Its key clients include Hyundai Motors, GC Pharma and LG Chem.

Yoon & Yang is well known for its representation of high-profile individuals in significant white-collar litigation and investigations, and is increasingly active on behalf of larger defendant groups and corporate bodies. The firm has a deep bench that includes a number of former state prosecutors and judges, with several lawyers in the team who specialise in handling police investigations. The team is adept at handling government investigations into bribery, embezzlement and breach of trust issues. The practice additionally provides risk assessment, performs internal and regulatory investigations, and designs compliance frameworks. It is also engaged in matters involving trade secrets infringement. Its key clients include SK Innovation, Deutsche Securities Korea and Samsung Electronics Service.

DR & AJU is recognised for offering expertise in a broad range of mandates, encompassing bribery, corruption, fraud and financial crimes. The team is also well equipped to represent clients in internal and government investigations, particularly in cases relating to abuse of power and embezzlement. It fields a team of criminal litigation lawyers, as well as former judges, prosecutors and police investigators. The firm's clientele includes Korean entities and their senior executives, as well as former government officials.

Jipyong's white-collar criminal defence team offers experience in a range of matters including bribery, corruption, fraud and financial crimes. The firm regularly represents CEOs and other executives in cases involving allegations of embezzlement and securities fraud. Its team is also active in investigations into breach of election laws and the Labour Standards Act. The team boasts a number of former public prosecutors and a former judge.