Director Liability Insurance in Korea: Follow the Oxy Reckitt Beckiser

Director Liability Insurance is important and the cost is trivial. Don’t let your company skimp on this important part of your success as a director of a Korean company. If you are investigated you may need your own legal counsel, your company may throw you under the bus and you may have lost out-of-pocket expenses, thus, a little insurance can go a long way. Another article that may be of interest: Suing Korean Directors and Don’t Drop the Director Liability Insurance Yet.

The best lawyers, in Korea, often don’t work for the ubiquitous/”leading” law firms, because of Korean realities. This is known by many Koreans and it is why Koreans shop around for the best lawyer for the specific case.

Too often, we see foreign defendants in criminal cases who choose to maintain the same “corporate” firm for criminal matters. This is not always the best move and we can see in many of the most noteworthy cases that this is not, always, the rule. Realize that you are hiring a lawyer – not a law firm.

Also, realize that a proactive, non-conflicted, aggressive, and respected lawyer is essential for all criminal defense matters. These lawyers are hard to find in Korea, especially when we consider that these lawyers, typically, need to be very senior retired judges to be effective.

When you find attorneys in Korea with these capabilities, they are worth their weight in gold – and often, also, charge their weight in gold, thus, obtain insurance.

Korean Director Liability Insurance Coverage is Essential.

We recommend to all clients to obtain a policy of, at least, equal to US$ 400,000.

The policies, often, cover legal fees, lost work and incidental damages caused by criminal and civil actions taken against the director.

Sean Hayes is co-chair of the Korea Practice Team at IPG Legal. He is the first non-Korean attorney to have worked for the Korean court system (Constitutional Court of Korea) and one of the first non-Koreans to be a regular member of a Korean law faculty. Sean is ranked, for Korea, as one of only two non-Korean lawyers as a Top Attorney by AsiaLaw.

Sean’s profile may be found at: Sean C. Hayes.