Even as the regional economy recovers from the pandemic, the risk of disputes remains a major concern with issues emerging from supply chain disruptions, digital transformation, evolving ESG considerations and other factors. Having the best litigators on your side is thus critical, and the ALB Top 15 North Asia Litigators ranking spotlights some of the leading practitioners in Hong Kong, Japan, and Korea.

Can you tell us about a particularly challenging case you have handled in the past year or so?

I successfully represented a Korea company as a defendant in a case, main issues of which were vicarious liability and the doctrine of piercing the corporate veil of overseas subsidiary. As you know, such legal issues are not black or white. They are rather matter of holistic determination based on various circumstantial facts with their own grey scales in each. In that case, it was so difficult to predict the result even for me who spent more than 20 years in courtrooms. In addition, the governing law was Chinese law. I was very fortunate to have better support from our China Team than the claimant’s counsels.

How do you stay up-to-date on the latest developments in the legal field, and how do you use this knowledge to benefit your clients?

First of all, I learn a lot from my colleagues. BKL offers various occasions to be taught almost on daily basis. We also have well organized extensive DB system being updated every second. I also try to make time to attend colloquiums, conferences or symposiums at home and abroad. Of course, I look over the articles posted by legal magazines or newsletters from ABL, IBA, WLG etc. not to miss any important legal development. As most of our clients want to be advised and helped by BKL on the frontline issues without precedents, it is very important to catch up with the latest discussion among professionals and academics.

How do you approach the process of preparing for a trial, and how would you describe your strategy for effectively presenting a client’s case in court?

Representation in a courtroom mainly consists of explanation and persuasion. To explain well, you must digest the case thoroughly before saying anything to judges. If you are not familiar with the issues, it will demand you more time and effort. If you like to learn new things, it will help. To persuade well, you must be able to see the case and its development from judge’s point of view. In doing so, you should always have their cognitive biases in your mind. In the end, they are human too.