After an arbitration panel outside of Korea renders an arbitral award against a Korean company or individual, typically, if the non-prevailing party lacks assets outside of Korea or the prevailing party needs to enjoin acts in Korea, the prevailing party chooses to enforce the arbitration award in Korea. Enforcement is not as easy as just giving arbitral awards to non-prevailing Korean parties. For enforcement of foreign judgments in Korean courts please see: Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Korean Courts. When enforcing foreign arbitral awards in Korea, Article
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Tax Liability of Controlling Shareholders in a Korean Company: Tax Law Updates
Under Article 39 of Korea’s Framework Act on National Taxes, unpaid taxes owed to the Korean government are enforceable against certain “ologopolistic” shareholders of respective debtor company’s shareholder. This secondary liability of shareholders is codified within the Framework Act on National Taxation. Article 39 of the Framework Act on National Taxes, specifically, notes that: “Where the property of a corporation is not enough to pay national taxes, additional dues and disposition fees for arrears imposed upon or to be paid by the corporation, any person who falls
Continue readingPrivity of Contract in Franchise Agreements in Korea: Korean Franchise Law Updates
Normally, in Korea, a contract/agreement cannot confer rights nor impose obligations upon a person who is no a party to the contract/agreement. One interesting case, in franchise law, applied this principle to the benefit of the franchisor and the detriment to a supplier. A Supplier delivered food through a Distributor to a Franchisee based on a franchisee requirement iterated in a franchise agreement with a franchisor. The case brings to light, also, the potential liability of franchisors for acts of Korean franchisees. The dispute occurred, of course, since the Supplier
Continue readingDebt Collection Cases in Korea on the Rise: Buyers and Sellers Beware
My firm has noticed a sharp increase in the number of requests for the debt collection services of my team. One of these cases involves an unpaid invoice from a British company to a Korean wholesaler for over USD 700,000. The British company was duped by a small paid invoice which was quickly followed by an unpaid large invoice. Of course, the Korean company (not a company –one guy and a personal bank account) was not capitalized and has few assets. The case shall be handled through
Continue readingEnglish-speaking Korean lawyers and International Lawyers at International Law Firm in Korea discussing issues of Korean Law
IPG Legal is a leading client-focused international law firm with offices in Korea that is, often, selected over the ubiquitous Korean Law Firms when success is essential and success depends on nuanced street-smart advice, proactive and unconflicted representation. Our attorneys are, intentionally. different from the crowd. From our retired judge partners to our junior associates, we are all trained with an intense focus on client success, lawyer proactivity, and to understand the nexus between your commercial and legal needs. Our attorneys shall never push to you useless memos,
Continue readingA Franchisor may be Unable to Prosecute a Franchisee for Embezzlement in Korea
Article 355 of Korea’s Criminal Act defines embezzlement as: “a person who, having the custody of another’s property, embezzles or refuses to return the property shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than five years or a fine not exceeding fifteen million won.” In a landmark case in Korea’s Franchise Jurisprudence, the Supreme Court ruled a franchisee may not be held criminally liable for embezzlement for “arbitrary spending of funds” and not paying franchise fees under the franchise agreement, since the Supreme Court deemed that the
Continue readingKorean Court Recognition and Enforcement of American, European & other Court Judgments in Korean Courts
Question: I have a final judgment against a Korean company from a New York State Court. How can I enforce this judgment in Korea against this Korean company? Korean Central District Court. Answer: A foreign judgment, in Korea, can be executed based on meeting the requirements of the Civil Execution Act of Korea and the Civil Procedure Act of Korea. The relevant provisions are Article 26 and Article 27 of the Korean Civil Execution Act and Article 217 of the Korean Civil Act. If you are interested
Continue readingWill the Korean Government Kill Bitcoin? The legality of Bitcoin in Korea
Local Korean vernaculars have reported that Bitcoin and other “Alt Coins” are to be investigated by the Bank of Korea, Korea’s Prosecutors Office and other government agencies. It is alleged by some in the Korean government that these crypto-currencies may be nothing more than Ponzi or Pump & Dumb Schemes. While, others, proclaim these currencies are at the foundation of freedom and they help to fight inflation imposed by central banking authorities, allows for anonymous transactions and low transaction fees. If the Korea government has made up
Continue readingKorea New Exchange (KONEX) Basics
The Korean Exchange (KRX) established, on July 1, 2013, an SME only-listed securities market with the, facial, purpose of providing a new avenue for SMEs in obtaining assets for investments. A KONEX-listed firm with capabilities to list, at a later date, on the KOSDAQ or KOSPI may, also, benefit from a stream-lined procedure to list on the KOSDAQ or KOSPI. Korea’s capital markets have been, strongly, criticized for not providing adequate funding sources for small companies. Most funding for companies either comes from the banks or via
Continue readingCredit Rating Agencies in Korea: Due Diligence of Your Supplier, Franchisee, Joint Venture Partner & Distributors
Korea has established four credit rating agencies. The four agencies are: National Information & Credit Evaluation (NICE); Korea Investor Services (KIS); Korea Ratings (KR); and Seoul Credit Rating & Information (SCRI). Some reports provided by these rating agencies are provided in English. However, many of the English reports are not complete. Thus, it is advisable to make sure if you have an English version of a report that it is same as the Korean version of the report. Additionally, it is best to have someone with knowledge
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