O'Melveny, Paul Hastings Launch South Korea
Offices
By Julia Love November 13, 2012
O'Melveny & Myers opened an office in
Seoul Monday, becoming at least the third U.S. firm to open a South Korean
office just this month.
Jinwon Park and Sungyong Kang, both of
counsels, will be based in Seoul for the firm; counsel Youngwook Shin and
partner Joseph Kim, head of the Korea practice, will divide their time between
the U.S. and Korea.
"I'm very excited," Shin said.
"By having a physical presence in Korea, we think we can serve our clients
more efficiently."
O'Melveny followed Paul Hastings, which
launched its Seoul office last week. Korea Office Chair Jong Han Kim will be
joined in that office by vice chair and corporate partner Daniel Kim, of
counsel Dong Chul Kim, of counsel Woojae Kim and associate K. Trisha Chang, who
plans to relocate from Washington, D.C.
Both firms came on the heels of Covington
& Burling, which debuted its office in Seoul on November 1. Korea-based
corporate partner William H.Y. Park is going to lead a team of four other
lawyers for Covington.
U.S. firms have been scrambling to get a
foothold in South Korea's legal market since a free trade agreement that took
force earlier this year created the long-awaited opportunity. The Recorder
sibling publication The Am Law Daily reported that O'Melveny, Paul Hastings and
Covington were among at least 16 firms that sought approval from the South
Korean Ministry of Justice and the Korean Bar Association to start offices in
the country. Ropes & Gray was first to open its doors in July, and Sheppard
Mullin Richter & Hampton followed suit in August.
Sheppard Mullin Chairman Guy Halgren noted
that the firm has landed several new Korean clients since starting its office
in Seoul.
"We think the reason we were able to
get that additional work is because we were over there," he said.
A team of three lawyers launched the office
and the firm has hired a few more Korean and American lawyers, who are awaiting
approval from the Korean Ministry of Justice, Halgren said. But because
American firms are not permitted to practice Korean law, Halgren sees no need
now for a large operation.
