Ro&Company: "Pressuring to Withdraw from Lotok is 'Illegal'... Audit Requested from Fair Trade Commission"

Fair Trade Commission to issue corrective orders and fines on the 23rd
Law&Company "Must not miss the golden time"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Korea Fair Trade Commission has decided to impose a total fine of 2 billion KRW on the Korean Bar Association (KBA) and the Seoul Bar Association (Seoul Bar). This punishment is for pressuring lawyers registered on the legal platform 'Lotoc' to withdraw their membership.

In response, Ro&Company, the operator of Lotoc, stated, "It has been revealed that the act of urging withdrawal from Lotoc is illegal and unfair."

In a statement on the 23rd, Ro&Company expressed "deep respect and gratitude for the Fair Trade Commission's decision," adding, "It has been clearly proven that the KBA and Seoul Bar's acts of urging withdrawal from Lotoc are illegal and unfair."

Ro&Company has been sued multiple times by lawyer organizations. Although all cases were dismissed with 'no charges,' it lost half of the 4,000 lawyers registered on Lotoc and is currently facing an existential crisis. [Related article=Ro&Company cuts half of its staff in restructuring... also puts up new Gangnam office for sale]

Ro&Company appealed, saying, "The withdrawal pressure carried out by the KBA and Seoul Bar against Lotoc, a clearly legal service, was an illegal act too burdensome for a Korean startup to bear."

They continued, "The newly appointed president of the KBA, who is set to take office on the 27th, has declared 'war against Lotoc' and is refusing to engage in even minimal dialogue," adding, "We hope the KBA shows a progressive change in attitude toward the final resolution of this matter."

Finally, they said, "The government's and public's attention is urgently needed so that the last golden time is not missed," and "We ask for support so that citizens in need of legal assistance do not lose their place to turn to and so that Lotoc can continue to innovate the legal market."

Earlier that day, the Fair Trade Commission decided to issue corrective orders and impose a total fine of 2 billion KRW on the KBA and Seoul Bar for prohibiting the use of Lotoc services and urging withdrawal.

The Fair Trade Commission plans to prevent similar cases from recurring in the service innovation platform sector. It also announced it will strengthen monitoring of interference by existing business organizations in new platform business activities.