White & Case has opened an office in Seoul, becoming the latest international firm to open its doors in the South Korean capital since the country liberalised its legal market in 2011.
While White & Case has had a Korea practice for more than two decades, the new office offers on-the-ground support for its clients, particularly in the areas of M&A, project finance, private equity and dispute resolution.
Los Angeles-based commercial litigation partner James Lee, who oversees the firm’s Korea practice group, will relocate to Seoul to head the new office. Lee will be joined by construction partner Mark Goodrich, who will move to Seoul from London, and corporate partner Kyungseok Kim, who joined the firm from Linklaters’ Seoul office in March.
White & Case’s Asia head Eric Berg described the launch of the Seoul office as a natural next step for the firm.
“This allows us to provide local support with UK and US law capability for our Korean clients, which include a broad spectrum of organisations and government agencies,” said Berg in a statement.
The Seoul office is White & Case’s seventh branch in Asia, and 39th worldwide.
Since the signing of U.S. and EU Free Trade Agreements with Korea in 2011, which allow American and European law firms to open offices in Korea, more than 25 international law firms have set up shop in Seoul, operating as Foreign Legal Consultant offices. However, certain restrictions remain in place until 2016, which limit the work international firms can handle to primarily outbound and international dispute resolution matters.
