[Invest&Law] Law Firms Mobilize for October National Assembly Audit... Special Mission to Shield Corporate Risks

Former Ministers, Vice Ministers, and National Assembly Aides Join Expert Teams
Law Firms Stand Out by Embracing AI and Recruiting Practitioner-Oriented Talent

With the upcoming National Assembly audit scheduled for October, major law firms' government affairs and legislative advisory teams have been moving quickly, engaging in what could be called a “preliminary round” ahead of the audit. In the past, corporations handled government affairs directly through their own in-house teams, dealing with the government and the National Assembly. However, following the enactment of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act (commonly known as the Kim Young-ran Act), and stricter regulations on official interactions, the barriers to direct communication have risen significantly. Moreover, in the aftermath of the government corruption scandal, many companies have significantly downsized or dismantled their own government affairs organizations. As a result, the management of political and regulatory risks by corporations is increasingly being outsourced to large law firms.

These government affairs and legislative advisory teams coordinate the appearance of major corporate executives at the audit, analyze the interests and areas of expertise of individual lawmakers, and focus on preventing regulatory risks in key business sectors through legislative measures. Law firms have set up dedicated teams that include former high-ranking bureaucrats, expert advisors, and legal professionals specializing in legislation and regulation, establishing a one-stop response system.

◆ Diverse Recruitment from Ministers and Vice Ministers to National Assembly Staff = As of August 5, according to the legal community, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC runs a 'Regulatory Response Solution Center' with about 150 professionals. At Bae, Kim & Lee, experts with experience in designing policies for finance, trade, science and technology, and energy sectors collaborate in a matrix structure with attorneys. The center is overseen by regulatory group leader Byungnyul Woo, a foreign attorney who previously served as the Vice Governor for Economic Affairs of Gangwon Province. The team’s expertise has been further bolstered by the addition of former high-level officials such as Seungbeom Koh, former Chairman of the Financial Services Commission; Uiseop Cho, former Chief of the National Assembly Budget Office (vice-ministerial level); Hwajin Park, former Vice Minister of Employment and Labor; Kyungsik Cho, former Vice Minister of Science and ICT; and Jaehyun Lim, former Commissioner of the Korea Customs Service. The Regulatory Response Solution Center at Bae, Kim & Lee has contributed to achievements such as revising the Urban Gas Business Act to utilize liquefied natural gas cold energy, securing approval for the Ulleung Spring Water project through proactive administration consultations with the Board of Audit and Inspection, and exempting educational environment impact assessments for development projects through authoritative interpretations from the Ministry of Government Legislation.

Shin & Kim established the first practitioner-centered dedicated team in the legal industry. Its 'Legislative Strategy Advisory Group' has about 120 experts, most of whom previously worked at the National Assembly Secretariat, as legislative aides, or in various government ministries. The group is led by Attorney Daeyong Baek (Judicial Research and Training Institute 31st class), who served as a Commissioner at the Personal Information Protection Commission (vice-ministerial level). Key members include Senior Advisor Daeseob Jang, who served as a Senior Legislative Expert at the National Assembly Secretariat for over 30 years handling legislative affairs; former Deputy Chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, Hyeongki Nam; and former First Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service, Hyeongjoong Yoon. The group provides advisory support for various government investigations and has established an integrated response system that operates comprehensive situation rooms and on-site response centers during corporate crises.

Lee & Ko expanded its legislative consulting team, originally launched in 2011, into the 'RGA Solution Group' in 2017. Currently, about 60 experts are active in this team. Key members managing regulatory issues include Attorney Yoonkeun Woo (former three-term National Assembly member, 22nd class), Jeonggu Jin, former Deputy Chief of the National Assembly Secretariat, and Attorney Jongseok Lee (29th class), who served as Secretary of the Prime Minister's Administrative Appeals Committee. The group is further strengthened by advisors who are former high-level bureaucrats, such as Chaemin Lim, former Minister of Health and Welfare; Kyungdeok Ahn, former Minister of Employment and Labor; and Woongseop Jin, former Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service. The team has provided advice for policy responses in light of changes in the global economic environment, as well as for administrative measures by central and local government agencies.

Yulchon LLC has a 'Legislative Strategy Response Team' of about 30 members. The team constantly monitors legislative and regulatory trends in the National Assembly and government, taking into account legislative techniques, political judgements, and corporate perspectives. Members include Attorney Jiwoong Park (37th class), a former Senior Administrative Officer in the Presidential Office; Kisung Koo, former Deputy Chief of the National Assembly Secretariat; and Seunghee Koo, former Senior Administrative Officer at the Senior Secretary to the President for Civil Affairs Office. The team also works in collaboration with former National Assembly members Sangjik Yoon and Keumjoo Son, and former Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Seungwook Moon, among others.

◆ Betting on AI and Data = A recent trend in law firm government affairs is the active use of data and artificial intelligence (AI), moving away from traditional reliance on building personal relationships and legwork. Some teams now analyze lawmakers’ bill sponsorship and speech histories to assign scores to the probability of a bill’s passage, and others have brought on econometrics professors for data-driven analysis.

A notable example is the 'GRC Group' at HwaHyun (HwaWoo), which has about 50 members. This group has developed a provisional 'AI Legislative Prediction Model and Political Risk Analysis System' that analyzes legislative circumstances based on real data, quantifies possibilities, and identifies crucial response periods. The team, led by Group Head Jungseok Hong (passed the 1st bar exam and formerly headed the Fair Trade Commission’s Installment Transactions Division), works together with advisors such as Kwangon Park, former floor leader of the Democratic Party; Jonggu Choi, former Chairman of the Financial Services Commission; Inbok Lee, former Supreme Court Justice (11th class); and Changdong Jeong, Audit Committee member. Some of the group’s notable achievements include involvement in amending the Distribution Industry Development Act regarding operating hour restrictions for complex shopping malls and drafting laws to manage and supervise nuclear power plant operators. Jungseok Hong of the HwaHyun GRC Group commented, “Regulation is not an unpredictable risk but a variable that can be managed with data. Our goal is to protect companies at the pre-legislative stage, not through litigation.”

Jipyung LLC has also expanded its team, reorganizing its existing structure into the 'Public Policy Solution Center' with about 20 members as of January last year, focusing on offering comprehensive government affairs solutions. Working together with the Jipyung Law and Policy Research Institute, the firm has published a legislative process guidebook for the National Assembly and is currently preparing to release a manual for responding to the National Assembly audit, concurrently building a systematic database. The leadership team includes Managing Partners Seongtaek Lim and Bongkwan Sa (Judicial Research and Training Institute 22nd and 23rd classes), Group Head Jingwon Kim (passed the 2nd bar exam and former National Assembly aide), Jeonghyup Seo, former acting Mayor of Seoul, and Honorary Managing Partner Gonghyeon Lee (3rd class), who previously served as a Constitutional Court Justice.

Meanwhile, Kim & Chang does not operate a dedicated group for legislative advisory services, but instead provides customized responses for each issue via attorneys and experts with extensive legislative and administrative experience in each field.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.