Overview
Seungho Sohn is a partner at Bae, Kim & Lee LLC. Mr. Sohn has been actively advising in various sectors, including fair trade, subcontract, distributorship, franchise business, and large retail business. In particular, based on his work experience at the Korea Fair Trade Commission, he has provided legal services to domestic and global leading companies in the fields of manufacturing, construction, IT, finance, telecommunication, distribution, pharmaceutics, and franchise business. On the basis of such involvement, Mr. Sohn have accumulated rich knowledge and practice experience in a broad range of industries.
In addition to his legal practices, Mr. Sohn is performing diverse activities, including giving lectures to corporations, participating academic societies, holding seminar, and providing services for third parties. Prior to joining BKL, he was an in-house counsel for STX Offshore & Shipbuilding and an investigator at the Korea Fair Trade Commission. Mr. Sohn earned a J.D. degree from Kyungpook National University Law School and a B.A. degree from Seoul National University.
Related Practices
Representative Experience
2018-Present
Bae, Kim & Lee LLC
2013-2018
Korea Fair Trade Commission
2012-2013
In-House Counsel, STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.
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2024-Present
External Legal Advisor, Korea Fair Trade Mediation Agency
2023-Present
Auditor, Academic Member, Korean Society of Subcontracting Law
2023
Law Research Program for Professional Field (Fair Trade Act Program), Seoul National University
2022-Present
Member, Writing Committee for the Commentary, LAWnB ONJU
Representative Matters
Advised Manufacturing Company A and Pharmaceutical Company AB on the response to KFTC investigation regarding the alleged unfair business practices (such as refusal to deal, abuse of dominant bargaining position, and practice of resale price maintenance)
Advised Finance Company B and Construction Company BA on their respective unfair trade practices (such as transactions based on restrictive conditions, tie-in sale, etc.)
Represented Company C and Company CA in the litigation seeking the revocation of disposition with regard to the collusion on commission fees, etc.
Represented Company D and Company DA in the litigation seeking the revocation of disposition with regard to the collusion on base paper price
Represented Company E and Company EA in the litigation seeking the revocation of disposition with regard to the collusion in the bid hosted by a public institution
Antitrust and Competition, Bid Rigging, Unfair Support, Business Combination
Advised Manufacturing Company A and Pharmaceutical Company AB on the response to KFTC investigation regarding the alleged unfair business practices (such as refusal to deal, abuse of dominant bargaining position, and practice of resale price maintenance)
Advised Finance Company B and Construction Company BA on their respective unfair trade practices (such as transactions based on restrictive conditions, tie-in sale, etc.)
Represented Company C and Company CA in the litigation seeking the revocation of disposition with regard to the collusion on commission fees, etc.
Represented Company D and Company DA in the litigation seeking the revocation of disposition with regard to the collusion on base paper price
Represented Company E and Company EA in the litigation seeking the revocation of disposition with regard to the collusion in the bid hosted by a public institution
Represented Company F in the KFTC's investigation with regard to the collusion of examination fees.
Advised Group G and Group GA, and assisted their affiliates in responding to KFTC investigation regarding the alleged unfair support practices
Advised Finance Company H and Manufacturing Company HA on their unfair support practices for affiliates
Advised Distribution Company I and Service Company IA on their reports on the staus as holding company
Represented Heavy Industries Company J in filing a business combination report in connection with its acquisition of Company JA
Represented Heavy Industries Company K in filing a business combination report in connection with its acquisition of Company KA
Subcontract
Regularly advised major construction companies, manufacturers and SI companies, such as Company L and Company LA, on major issues regarding the Subcontracting Act (such as issuance of x-documents, unfair special agreement, payment of consideration, management information, etc.)
Advised major construction companies, manufacturers and SI companies including Company M and Company MA on the response to the KFTMA's mediations in a case reporting on the violation of the Subcontracting Act
Advised major construction companies, manufacturers and SI companies such as Company N and Company NA on their response to the KFTC's investigations resulting from case reporting on the violation of the Subcontracting Act
Advised major construction companies, manufacturers and SI companies such as Company O and Company OA on their response to the KFTC's ex officio investigation on the violation of Subcontracting Act
Advised major manufacturers such Company P and Company PA on the response to the KFTC's investigations on reported technology theft (refusal of transaction) and ex officio investigation
Advised major construction companies, manufacturers and SI companies, such as Company Q and Company QA on written surveys on actual situation/x-evaluation of their agreements from the perspective of the Subcontracting Act
Advised major companies such as Company R and Company RA on their response to an investigation conducted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups concerning the alleged violation of the Act on Mutually Beneficial Cooperation (such as unfair decision of prices) and the Act on Protection and Support of Technologies of SMEs (such as technology theft)
Advised clients on the legal issues arising in relation to the Subcontracting Act and represented in administrative litigations seeking the revocation of disposition (including the request for a provisional injunction on suspension of execution) and civil litigations seeking damages (including the litigation for affirmation of the non-existence of obligation)
Franchise Business, Large Franchise and Retail Business, Agency, Consumer (including the Laws on the Electronic Commerce Transactions, etc.)
Regularly advised Company S and Company SA on the obligations/prohibited matters involving their franchise headquarters (concerning such as a written statement of information disclosure, false and misleading information, business area, and termination of franchise agreement) under the Franchise Act
Advised major franchise heaquarters such as Company T and TA on their response to the KFTC investigation regarding the alleged violation of the Franchise Act (such as forced purchase, setting of unfair contract clauses or unfair changes of contract clauses, provision of disadvantages, business areas, etc.)
Regularly advised major department stores and shopping centers such as Company U and Company UA on their obligations and prohibitions under the Act on Large Retail Business (such as purchase under special contract, return, sales incentive, sales promotion cost, use of employees, etc.)
Advised major companies such as Company V and VA on their responses to the KFTC investigation on the alleged violation of the Agency Act (such as forced purchase, requests for economic profits, etc.)
Advised major companies such as Company W and WA on their responses to the KFTC investigation concerning the alleged violation of the Act on Electronic Commerce (such as obligation to indicate information on initial screen page, and obligation to notice/ban on interfering with cancellation of an order)
Regularly advised major companies such as Company X and Company XA on the alleged violation of the Act on Regulation of Terms and Conditions
Advised Company Y on the applicability of the Installment Transactions Act applies to the sales of products combined with funeral services
Compliance
Advised companies Z (Construction), ZA (Electronics), and ZB (Automobile), etc. on compliance in connection with the Fair Transactions in Subcontracting Act
Advised companies AA (Manufacturing) and AAB (Construction), etc. on compliance regarding an implementation of a technology extortion prevention system
Advised companies BB (Retail conglomerate) and BBA (Distribution), etc. on compliance regarding the Act on Fair Transactions in Large Retail Business
Advised companies CC (Manufacture) and CCA (Automobile), etc. on compliance in connection with the Fair Agency Transactions Act
Advised group companies DD (Steel manufacture), DDA (Electronics), and DDB (Automobile), etc. on compliance in connection with intercompany transactions and collusion
Education
2012
Kyungpook National University Law School (J.D.)
2009
Seoul National University (B.A.)
Selected Activities
Publications
Fair Agency Transactions Act, New Publication (Co-author, LAWnB ONJU, 2022)
The exclusive right to accuse and the system of mandatory accusation request (Legal Times, 2021)
Recent Trends on Request for, and Utilization of, Technical Information and Request for Managerial Information under Subcontracting Act, Journal of Competition No. 202 (Korea Fair Competition Federation, 2020)
Activity
Speaker, Discussion on Issues and an Outlook of Delivery Price Linkage System (Korea Business Law Association, 2023)
Lecturer, Confidentiality of Technical Data (Korea Fair Trade Mediation Agency, 2022)
Lecturer, Mentoring for the International Association of Korean Lawyers (IAKL, 2022)
Lecturer, Fair Trade Matters Including the Fair Trade Act, the Subcontracting Act, and the Mutual Cooperation Act (LAWnB, Korea Fair Competition Federation, 2018-present)
Lecturer, Fair Trade Matters Including the Fair Trade Act, the Subcontracting Act, the E-commerce Act, the Mutual Cooperation Act, and Compliance Program (Major Companies Including Samsung Group, Hyundai Group, Lotte Group, Shinsegae Group, SeAH Group, public organizations, credit rating agencies, universities, etc., 2018-present)
Speaker, Seminar on Recent Trend of KFTC policies and investigation on the subcontracting matters, including technology theft, and companies’ countermeasures (Bae, Kim & Lee, 2018)
Qualifications
2012
Korea
