Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer has hired its third Seoul partner from White & Case for its recently launched office in the South Korean capital, quickly expanding the office into one of the largest among international firms.

Seoul office executive partner Jun Hee Kim, who co-heads White & Case's Asia-Pacific international arbitration practice with Singapore partner Matthew Secomb, will join Arnold & Porter as a partner later this month.

Kim focuses on international arbitration matters in the technology, intellectual property, infrastructure, construction and engineering industries. He also advises on disputes related to mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and distributorships, as well as on international trade, litigation and criminal matters in foreign jurisdictions.

Previously, Kim was general counsel at Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. – the largest shipbuilder in the world. There, he oversaw international legal matters, including disputes, compliance and legal risk management, before joining White & Case as a partner in 2017. Before going in-house, Kim practised international arbitration with Korea's largest domestic firm, Kim & Chang, for nine years.

Jun Hee Kim Jun Hee Kim

At Arnold & Porter, Kim reunites with Seoul office head and disputes partner James Lee, who Kim succeeded as White & Case's Seoul office executive partner when Lee left in December to launch Arnold & Porter's Seoul office. He also reunites with corporate partner Kyungseok Kim, who made the move last month.

The Washington, D.C.-based firm opened its Seoul office in early March and focuses on cross-border intellectual property, M&A, export control, U.S. litigation, antitrust, international arbitration and international trade. In addition to partners Jun Hee Kim, Lee and Kyungseok Kim, Arnold & Porter's Seoul office will have three other lawyers.

With six lawyers, Arnold & Porter will have one of the larger presences in Seoul among international firms. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, which has 15 lawyers in Seoul, is arguably the largest among any global firms in Korea; Covington & Burling and Herbert Smith Freehills have eight lawyers each.

Arnold & Porter's Seoul office also works closely with a four-partner team in Washington, D.C., focused on U.S.-Korea trade and other public policy matters. That team joined from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld in 2015.

Meanwhile, White & Case's sole partner in Seoul, finance specialist Ji Hoon Hong, will succeed Jun Hee Kim as the firm's office executive partner. Hong said the Seoul office will focus on project finance, which was the original intention. Hong specialises in asset finance and relocated to Seoul from New York.

Besides Hong, White & Case has five other lawyers based in Seoul: project finance counsel Sarah Park, who joined in February from Shearman & Sterling's Singapore office, project and asset finance associate Sue Yeon Kwon, disputes associates Sebyul Chun and Catherine Yoon, and M&A associate Kyle Oh.* London-based construction and energy disputes partner Mark Goodrich, who was previously based in Seoul, also advises on Korea-related matters.

*Updated April 3: This story has been updated with the additions of associates Sue Yeon Kwon, Catherine Yoon and Kyle Oh, who are also based in White & Case's Seoul office.

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