Yulchon secures its place in the ‘Outstanding’ band for competition, dispute resolution, M&A, private equity and tax this year. Its famed dispute resolution practice has more than 250 professionals and keeps apace with an evolving market, creating new disputes practice areas that are novel and innovative.
The firm has strategically bolstered its team through key hires across various practice areas. The competition/antitrust practice has been particularly active in recruitment, welcoming Genny S Kim from Jipyong as a partner. However, the practice also saw the departures of Hyo Sung Kim in June 2024.
The dispute resolution practice underwent substantial growth, welcoming three new partners including Jinsub Kim from Samsung C&T legal team dispute resolution TF, Shi Won Lee from a role as Secretary to the President for Public Office Discipline, and Jae Hwan Shin from National Court Administration. Two partners departed – Rak Hyun Kim to SK Group and Jae Eok Park.
In the tax practice, Yulchon made strategic hires including Kwang Lae Cho from the Tax Tribunal, Jung Wook Jun from Samsung Life Insurance, and Se Bin Lee from Supreme Court of Korea.
Work highlights
Advised the Korean Ministry of Economy and Finance on the development of Korea’s OECD Pillar Two Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-up Tax framework for integration into domestic legislation.
Key clients
Euclid Transactional, Liberty GTS
Work highlights
Represented an auto parts manufacturer and its CEO in defending against criminal prosecution under health and safety laws. This is a significant victory for the client but also marks the first actual acquittal on the merits since the enactment of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.
Advised a foreign-owned company in negotiations with its labour union and represented it in defending against legal disputes at the labour office and Labor Relations Commission involving allegations of unfair labour practices and other violations of Korean labour laws.
Work highlights
Represented Korea Railroad Corporation in a lawsuit brought by Hyundai Development Company-SK E&C Consortium to enjoin and seek damages related to the sharing of approximately W400 billion ($275.3 million) in property-tax obligations for the Yongsan Station Area Urban Development Project. This case established an important legal precedent concerning the sharing of project costs, including property taxes, in large-scale development projects while showcasing Yulchon’s distinguished capabilities.
Key clients
Republic of Korea, Samsung C&T Corporation
Work highlights
Represented Ansys as Korean merger-control counsel in Synopsys’s $35 billion acquisition (the largest 2024 tech deal), guiding the first-ever use of the Korean Fair Trade Commission’s (KFTC) new Parties’ Voluntary Remedy Proposal process while tailoring global divestiture remedies to Korean market conditions.
Represented Shinsegae in the formation of a landmark Korean e-commerce joint venture with Alibaba International, contributing Gmarket and AliExpress Korea to create a combined platform aimed at competing with Coupang and Naver, while navigating the KFTC’s unprecedented merger review that will set the standard for future mega e-commerce alliances.
Key clients
Delta Air Lines, Evergreen Marine, Hana Bank, Shinhan Bank
Work highlights
Represented KB Asset Management as mezzanine-lender counsel in the acquisition of a tranche of existing senior debt secured by one Airbus A350-900 on lease to Singapore Airlines, negotiating security-sharing amendments and Muzinich profit-participation-note documentation in a challenging aviation-finance market.
Represented NH Amundi Asset Management as mezzanine-lender counsel in the financing of one Boeing 787-8 on lease to Qatar Airways, negotiating a $49.9 million senior-loan extension and Muzinich junior-note structure in a challenging aviation-finance market.
Key clients
Samsung Asset Management, Macquarie Asset Management, NH Investment & Securities
Work highlights
Represented DL E&C as defendant in the lawsuit brought by a housing developer to enjoin demolition and seek damages related to an abandoned 15-year-old capital-area housing project. This case is significant because it clarified the proper allocation of completion risk and payment responsibility between developer and contractor in long-stalled developments and triggered a public discourse about the legal consequences of developer-side defaults.
Represented HDC Hyundai Development Company in a lawsuit to revoke the imposition of penalty points on a controversial housing development site in Gwangju, Korea.
Key clients
Daewoo Engineering & Construction, Mooyoung Construction Management, Samsung C&T Corporation
