As the domestic legal market reaches saturation, innovative small and medium-sized law firms are seeking growth by targeting the global market as a strategic move. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Korea face challenges with local laws and regulations when expanding overseas, struggling due to the absence of in-house legal teams and the high fees of large law firms. These firms aim to create new opportunities by providing customized legal services tailored to these demands.
Targeting the U.S. and Southeast Asian Markets
On the 22nd, law firm DLG (lead attorney Cho Won-hee) announced the launch of the Global Business Support Center (GBSC) to assist SMEs and mid-sized companies in their overseas expansion. GBSC is characterized by offering not only comprehensive legal advice but also business solutions. Cho Won-hee (54, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 30), lead attorney of DLG, pointed out that small and medium-sized law firms face limitations such as a restricted client base, limited practice areas, and difficulties in recruiting lawyers, and chose global market expansion as a strategy to overcome these challenges.
Attorney Cho stated, “While the Asia Practice Circle, launched last year, mainly focused on legal advice, GBSC is an organization that primarily provides comprehensive consulting for SMEs and mid-sized companies aiming for overseas expansion,” adding, “We plan to address the legal and business issues faced by companies seeking to expand abroad in an integrated manner.”
GBSC targets domestic companies going overseas in the short term and companies entering Korea from Asia in the long term. Kim Hong-young, head of GBSC, added, “We plan to expand our overseas network to provide multifaceted consulting.”
Law firm Sugar Square (lead attorney Park Ji-young) is focusing on overseas expansion centered on Southeast Asia. Sugar Square opened offices in Cambodia and Laos this year, providing legal advice related to finance, energy, and infrastructure, and is expanding specialized services tailored to local markets. Experts familiar with local conditions collaborate with domestic lawyers to deliver services. The Cambodia office is managed by accountant Kim Kwang-hwan, who holds the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) certification and communicates with local companies in English and Khmer. The Laos office is led by finance expert Jeon Ji-soo, who offers consulting in various fields based on proficiency in English, Chinese, and Lao.
Park Ji-young (54, class 32), lead attorney, said, “As demand from companies planning overseas expansion is gradually increasing, we opened overseas offices to strengthen competitiveness,” adding, “We invited these two professionals because we believe that people with local expertise will provide high-quality services.”
Some law firms are aiming for North American expansion. Law firm Jium (lead attorneys Kim Seol-i and Kim Hyun-jong) expanded its operations to the U.S. on the 19th by appointing Henry Haggard, former U.S. Department of State Energy Bureau chief, as an advisor. Haggard served as a diplomat at the U.S. Department of State for 25 years, holding positions such as Political Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Korea and Director for Europe at the White House National Security Council, making him a leading expert on Korea and the EU. Since merging with the Middle East and Africa (MEA) specialized domestic law firm in July last year, Jium has been further expanding its overseas outreach.
Law firm Trinity (lead attorney Kim Sang-hoon) is differentiating itself by providing specialized services targeting the Korean diaspora in North America. Last year, Trinity signed an agreement with the Northern California Korean American Certified Public Accountants Association and has been offering legal advice on inheritance and gift issues for the Korean community.
Escaping the ‘Large Law Firm Concentration’ to the World
The primary reason small and medium-sized law firms are turning their attention to the global market is the monopolistic position of large law firms in the domestic legal market. Based on 2023 National Tax Service value-added tax filings, the top 10 law firms, excluding patent and tax firms, recorded revenues of approximately 3.3503 trillion KRW.
Among these, the six major firms?Kim & Chang, Bae, Kim & Lee, Lee & Ko, Yulchon, Sejong, and Hwa & Woo?alone generated about 3 trillion KRW in revenue, accounting for over 35% of the total domestic legal market size (approximately 8.1861 trillion KRW).
Considering there are 1,594 law firms nationwide, the ‘large law firm concentration’ phenomenon is very pronounced. Even in terms of the number of lawyers, out of 35,790 lawyers, 3,558 belong to the six major firms, meaning about 10% of all lawyers capture one-third of the legal market revenue. In this context, small and medium-sized law firms are choosing the global market as a new growth engine.
Demand Is Sufficient... Differentiation Is Key
According to a survey released in 2024 by the Korea Federation of Medium-sized Enterprises, 34.3% of responding mid-sized companies plan to enter new overseas markets but reported difficulties due to a lack of local regulatory and legal information. Particularly, legal-related issues such as “customs and administrative hurdles (25.1%)” and “import regulations of the target country (24.9%)” were found to be significant obstacles for companies. At the ‘Global Expansion SME Meeting’ hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups earlier this year, several SME representatives also voiced the need for professional advice when facing local legal and regulatory challenges during overseas expansion.
While demand appears clear, how to provide differentiated services from large law firms remains crucial. In July, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups signed agreements with four major law firms?Kim & Chang, Bae, Kim & Lee, Sejong, and others?to provide legal support to startups and SMEs aiming for global expansion.
As large law firms also strengthen support for SMEs, small and medium-sized law firms face the challenge of devising differentiated strategies. Kim Cheol-ung (39, bar exam 4th), a lawyer at Sugar Square who graduated from high school and university overseas and has been active in the ASEAN region, emphasized, “In regions like Southeast Asia, providing local government liaison services alongside legal advice is essential, making localized service delivery the key to success.” It is pointed out that providing long-term, friendly services locally will determine the success or failure of small and medium-sized law firms.
Reporter Jo Han-ju, Legal Times
※This article is based on content supplied by Law Times.
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