"Will Develop into an Expert Network Platform" - Yoo Jeong Lee, Managing Partner at Law Firm Won

Gender-Equal Pay Already Implemented in Company
"Boutique Mergers in IT, Finance, and Tax"
"Aiming to Achieve Both Scale and Substance"

Editor's Note"Since its establishment, Won has been a competent law firm that has handled major cases that attracted significant social attention over the past 15 years, such as the Samsung family inheritance case and the Sewol ferry disaster, achieving excellent results. It has also led social agendas such as AI ethics and ESG. It will continue its reputation as a trustworthy law firm that fulfills social responsibility."

On the 10th, Lee Yoo-jung (56, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 23), newly appointed Executive Managing Partner of Law Firm Won, shared her inauguration remarks. After serving as a prosecutor for about two years, she started her legal career at Jahayeon Law Firm, the predecessor of Won. She founded Won in 2009 and has been involved in management as a member of the Management Committee from the early days, before ascending to the Executive Managing Partner position last month.

Another special reason for her election is that she is the first female lawyer among the top 20 law firms to take on the role of Executive Managing Partner overseeing the firm's management. In 2018, Won appointed former Minister Kang Geum-sil (67, class 13) as the Representative Lawyer, but the Executive Managing Partner role was held by Yoon Ki-won (64, class 16). With Yoon's term ending last month, Lee succeeded him.

Lee Yujeong, the newly appointed executive representative attorney, is responding to an interview at the office building of Law Firm Won in Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Baek Seonghyun stwhite@lawtimes.co.kr]

Lee said, "Won already has many excellent female legal leaders such as former Minister Kang and Won Min-kyung, a non-standing member of the National Human Rights Commission, but I believe that starting as a regular lawyer and growing into the Executive Managing Partner can provide a different model of female leadership for juniors."

Lee has also made significant contributions to establishing a culture of gender equality within the firm. She implemented a gender-equal wage system, balanced the gender ratio in the personnel committee, and introduced paternity leave for male lawyers as well as flexible working hours for childcare. Based on these achievements, Law Firm Won received the 2024 Bar Association's Work-Family Balance Legal Culture Award in January. Compared to other law firms, Won has a higher retention rate of female lawyers and a higher proportion of female partners among all partners.

[Image source=Photo by Baek Seong-hyun stwhite@lawtimes.co.kr]

Lee plans to simultaneously expand Won's scale and substance. She said, "As a law firm providing comprehensive legal services, we will actively recruit specialized lawyers in areas where we are lacking." She is also open to mergers with small boutique law firms. Regarding this, she explained, "We are considering firms specialized in IT, finance, and taxation as potential merger candidates."

However, rather than simply increasing size, she intends to focus more on establishing a flexible network. Lee explained, "Won will act as a platform to create a structure that can collaborate flexibly with various expert groups such as tax accountants, patent attorneys, communication experts, and consultants." The goal is to reduce fixed costs and provide clients with one-stop services at reasonable prices.

Lee also emphasized the changing roles of lawyers in response to evolving legal demands. She stressed, "In the future, lawyers must have the ability to provide legal services necessary for overall corporate management, including not only dispute resolution but also management strategy formulation, and legal risk prevention and response." To this end, she is preparing marketing and leadership training for partner lawyers. Since April, she has launched the 'Heritage Won' program, offering total services related to inheritance issues such as inheritance and bequest planning and will drafting.

Furthermore, she stated, "Won’s operational philosophy is to be a law firm that can be trusted and relied upon in difficult and challenging times, and a respected firm fulfilling social responsibility." She added, "We will continue to serve as a counterpart to large law firms by representing public enterprises, mid-sized and small companies, and individuals who find it difficult to hire large law firms."

Yoo Ji-in, Legal Times Reporter

※This article is based on content supplied by Law Times.