Shin & Kim has recruited three ex-judges and a former chief prosecutor, strengthening the firm’s litigation practice, expertise in corporate investigations and financial institutional compliance as well as family and inheritance disputes.
Joo Yeon Jo, who worked in the anti-corruption investigation division 2 of Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, is now a partner in Shin & Kim’s criminal defence practice group.
Chanyoung Cho and Sejong Kim, who are former judges from the Seoul High Court, and Yanghee Kwon, formerly a family court judge, are also all partners at the firm.
Mooil Moon, senior partner and head of the criminal defence practice group at Shin & Kim and formerly the prosecutor general in Korea from 2017 to 2019, told Asia Business Law Journal that the addition of Jo reinforced the manpower of his practice group.
“As corporate activities become increasingly complex and criminal issues more diverse, [Jo] will provide differentiated legal services based on accumulated expertise and extensive practical experience to help clients effectively minimise risks,” said Moon.
Admitted to practice law in Korea and Illinois, Jo spent 21 years as a public prosecutor in Korea, mainly focusing on corporate and financial investigations with an emphasis on violations of the Capital Markets Act. He is also familiar with embezzlement, misappropriation, accounting fraud and bribery of major Korean conglomerates, having served as the chief prosecutor of the anti-corruption investigation division 2 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office from 2021 to 2022.
Jo’s most notable representative case was when he successfully prosecuted and detained Kwon Oh-soo, former chairman of Deutsch Motors in 2021 on charges of stock manipulation; chairman Kwon was found guilty in the first and second trials, and the third trial is currently ongoing.
In addition to Jo, the recruitment of former Seoul High Court judges, Cho and Kim, is significant for Shin & Kim. Major Korean law firms fiercely compete for Seoul High Court judges because of the demand for their expertise and hiring of higher-level judges is prohibited.
Jong-Han Oh, senior managing partner at Shin & Kim, told Asia Business Law Journal, “We believe that the reason we were able to recruit these outstanding former judges this time is due to the strong external recognition of Shin & Kim’s potential for future growth.”
Cho and Kim are now part of Shin & Kim’s litigaton practice group. During nine years as a judge at Seoul High Court and on the Jeonju Panel of the Gwangju High Court, Cho handled many labour cases, as well as administrative and tax cases.
In the Seoul High Court, Kim handled finance-related cases such as damages claims due to false statements in business reports, corporate disputes on the invalidation of shareholder meeting resolutions, and corporate matters including the cancellation of business unit sales due to post-contract value depreciation.
Kwon is an expert in family and inheritance law, having served for several years as a presiding judge at the Seoul Family Court and the head of the Anyang branch of the Suwon Family Court, where she handled cases involving divorce, property division, inheritance and adult guardianship. She will join Shin & Kim’s family and inheritance disputes team.
“Shin & Kim has invested considerable time and effort in recruiting top talent with the highest reputation in the industry, and this recruitment is also a testament to those efforts,” said Oh.
