Allen & Overy Set up a Seoul Office

Allen & Overy has opened an office in Seoul this month as part of its strategy to increase its presence and offerings in Asia as well as other high-growth markets.

The new office will be led by energy and project partners Matthias Voss and Jean Lee.

South Korea has shown tremendous growth and global integration over the past four decades, allowing it to develop into a key high-tech industrialized economy. Allen & Overy will not be providing local legal advice as it will continue to work in partnership with Korean firms. The firm has had a three-decade long relationship with the country and plans to strengthen its ties with the Korea-based clients, as well as those who are interested in investing in South Korea. The main areas of its work will be M&A, IP, arbitration, antitrust, capital markets and projects.

In a recent statement given by Voss, he claimed that “South Korea is one of the key players in the global economy – it is ranked 13th in the world by GDP, and more importantly  ranked ninth by imports and sixth by exports."

South Korea has become a popular market since the legal market opened up to foreign firms following the signing of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement. There are currently 25 international law firms operating in the country, including some of the global firms such as White & Case, Milbank, Herbert Smith Freehills, Covington & Burling and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. 

I.J.V