Chadbourne secures Samsung lawyer for Korea push

Chadbourne & Parke has bolstered its Korean practice as part of its Asia strategy, with the hire of a key Korean corporate counsel.

Chadbourne has hired Samsung Electronics vice president and corporate counsel Kyunghoon Lee, who was also acting general counsel for the Samsung Strategic Planning Office in Seoul, Korea. The company is a key client of the firm’s Korea practice.

The hire comes as South Korea publishes a draft Foreign Legal Consultant’s Bill, which will allow foreign law firms to open in the country, as detailed on www.TheLawyer.com (22 November)

If the bill is passed, foreign law firms, such as Chadbourne, would be able to launch in the country by mid-2008.

Lee, who has served as an in-house lawyer for 16 years, will be based in Chadbourne’s Washington DC office.

Lee, one of South Korea’s most high profile in-house lawyers, holds a variety of key positions in the country. He is vice chair of the Korean Corporate Counsel Association, a member of the Korean Securities Law Association, the Corporate Law Institute and the advisory committee to the Korean Listed Companies Association. He is also a member of the New York and Korean bars.

Lee is experienced in Korean law M&A, joint ventures, corporate restructurings and the improvement of corporate governance.