Journal of Arbitration Studies (한국중재학회지:중재연구)

The Korean Association of Arbitration Studies (한국중재학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Recent Debates in Attorney-Client related Privilege and Confidentiality in Korea and Its Implications to International Arbitration

  • Received : 2023.07.31
  • Accepted : 2023.09.01
  • Published : 2023.09.01
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

This article provides an overview of the state of attorney-client related privilege and confidentiality in Korea. It reviews the statutory framework, and how Korean courts have analyzed the privilege and confidentiality related to attorneys and their clients. It then examines the legislative initiatives Korea is currently debating with regard to adopting a more common law-style attorney-client privilege (ACP). If adopted, the new legislation will mark a significant milestone in providing guidance on how communications between attorney and client will be treated. Its impact in the context of international arbitration practice and law related to Korea is explored.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

The author would like to thank Hyewon Yoon and Seyeon Cho for their research assistance and the anonymous reviewers for their comments.

References

  1. Statutes and Rules
  2. Korean Constitution
  3. Korean Arbitration Act
  4. Korean Attorney-at-Law Act
  5. Korean Civil Procedure Act
  6. Korean Criminal Procedure Act
  7. Korean Foreign Legal Consultant Act
  8. Foreign Legal Consultant Code of Ethics
  9. Korean Commercial Arbitration Board, International Arbitration Rules (2016) 
  10. Korean Commercial Arbitration Board, Domestic Arbitration Rules (2016) 
  11. Korean Commercial Arbitration Board, Code of Ethics for Arbitrators (2016) 
  12. Elliott Associates v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-51, Procedural Order No. 4, 22 July 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/197.
  13. Elliott Associates v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-51, Procedural Order No. 7, 20 November 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/197.
  14. Elliott Associates v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-51, Procedural Order No. 8, 13 January 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/197.
  15. Elliott Associates v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-51, Procedural Order No. 14, 24 June 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/197.
  16. Elliott Associates v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-51, Procedural Order No. 16, 7 August 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/197.
  17. Elliott v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-51, Procedural Order No. 17, 4 September 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/197.
  18. Mason Capital L.P. and Mason Management LLC v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-55, Procedural Order No. 5, 15 January 2021. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/198.
  19. Mason Capital L.P. and Mason Management LLC v Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2018-55, Procedural Order No. 11, 8 July 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://pca-cpa.org/en/cases/198.
  20. 2000 HunMa 138, 23 September 2004 (Constitutional Court).
  21. 2008 No 2778, 26 June 2009 (Seoul High Court).
  22. 2009 Do 6788, 17 May 2012 (Supreme Court).
  23. 2012 HunMa 610, 30 July 2015 (Constitutional Court).
  24. 2020 GoHap 496, 13 January 2021 (Suwon District Court).
  25. 2020 HunMa 1030, 23 February 2023 (Constitutional Court).
  26. 2021 Bo 2, 11 May 2022 (Seoul District Court). 
  27. "Forum on the Guarantee of the Right of Audience and ACP", Korean Bar Association, 27 September 2016.
  28. "Forum Concerning Attorney-related Right to Confidentiality", National Assembly Member Na Kyung-won and Korean Bar Association, 23 November 2017.
  29. "Policy Debate Forum on the Adoption of ACP", National Assembly Member Cho Eung Cheon and Korean Bar Association, 10 July 2019.
  30. "IPBA Guidelines on Privilege and Attorney Secrecy in International Arbitration with Commentary 2019", Inter-Pacific Bar Association, 13 October 2019.
  31. "Legislative Forum on ACP ", National Assembly Member Cho Eung Cheon and Korean Bar Association, 18 August 2020.
  32. "Symposium on the Adoption of ACP", National Assembly Member Chung Woo-taik and Cho Eung Cheon, and Seoul Bar Association, 17 March 2023. 
  33. Ahn, Keon-Hyung, "Confidentiality and the Riddick Principle in International Commercial Arbitration", Journal of Arbitration Studies, Vol. 31, No. 3, 2021.
  34. Bae, Kim & Lee, Arbitration Law of Korea: Practice and Procedure, Juris, 2012.
  35. Baker & McKenzie, "Global Attorney-Client Privilege Guide", 4th Ed. 4 July 2022.
  36. Baumberger, Marc, "TagTime with Samaa Haridi - Legal Privilege in International Commercial Arbitration", ARIA Blog, 22 March 2021.
  37. Berger, Klaus Peter, Evidentiary Privileges: Best Practice Standards versus/and Arbitral Discretion, 22 Arbitration International 501, 501 (2006).
  38. Born, Gary, International Commercial Arbitration, Kluwer, 3rd ed., 2021.
  39. Choi, Byungchun, "The Attorny's Right to Refuse Seizure and Testimony and 'Attorny-Client Privilege'", Korean Journal Of Criminology, Vol. 72, 2023.
  40. Choi, Kwangsun, "Attorney's Duty of Confidentiality in France [Le regime du secret professionnel d'avocat francais]", The Journal of Comparative Private Law, Vol. 28, No. 4, 2021.
  41. Chung, Joon Hyung and Kim, Seul-ki, "Attorney-Client Privilege for In-house Counsels", Korean Journal of Criminology, Vol. 32, No. 4, 2021.
  42. DLA Piper, Legal Professional Privilege: Global Guide, Retrieved 15 July 2023, https://www.dlapiperintelligence.com/legalprivilege/about.html
  43. Dumanova, Madina & Neuburger, Per and Oblin, Klaus, "A Solution to Issues of Privilege In International Arbitration? The IPBA Guidelines", Oblin Publication, 5 September 2022.
  44. Franck, Susan D, "International Arbitration and Attorney-Client Privilege - A Conflict of Laws Approach." Arizona State Law Journal, Vol. 51, No. 3, 2019.
  45. Goldberg, Karina, "Privilege and document production in International Arbitration", Chambers and Partners Article, 8 March 2021.
  46. Hah, Jung Chul, "Lawyer's Duty of Confidentiality: Focused on Public Interest Exception", Kyungpook Natl. Univ. Law Journal, Vol. 47, 2014.
  47. Hah, Jung Chul, "Lawyer's Duty of Confidentiality: Focused on Public Interest Exception", Kyungpook Natl. Univ. Law Journal, Vol. 47, No. 3, 2014.
  48. Han, Aera, "A Study on the Attorney-client Privilege and Its Improvement", Korean Lawyers Association Journal, Vol. 68, No. 4, 2019. https://doi.org/10.17007/KLAJ.2019.68.4.007
  49. Huh, Jinsung, "Constitutional Understanding of the Right to Provide Legal Counsel", Public Law, Vol. 46, No. 4, 2018.
  50. Jung, Sang-Min, "Attorney's Duty of Confidentiality in Germany", Human Right and Justice, Vol. 502, 2021.
  51. Jung, Sang-Min, "Corporate's Internal Investigations and Attorney-Client Privilege", Human Right and Justice, Vol. 514, 2023.
  52. Jung, Sang-Min, "Internal Investigations and Attorney-Client Privilege at Anti-Money Laundering", International Law Review, Vol. 14, No. 2, 2022. https://doi.org/10.36727/JJILR.14.2.202211.010
  53. Kim, Hyeon-Soo, "A Study on Lawyer's Duty and Privilege of Confidentiality", The Justice, Vol. 177, 2020.
  54. Kim, Hyosung, "A Study on the Introduction of the Legal Professional Privilege in Competition Law Procedures: Focused on the procedure of Japan", Journal of Korean Competition Law, Vol. 42, 2020.
  55. Kim, Joongi, International Arbitration in Korea, Oxford University Press, 2017.
  56. Kim, Tae Bong, "Lawyer's Duty of Confidentiality", Chonnam Law Review, Vol. 36, No. 4, 2016.
  57. Kong, Young John, "A Comparative Study of the Attorney Ethics Rules of Korea and the U.S. and the Application of Ethics Rules in Cross-Border Legal Representations", Hanyang Law Review, Vol. 34, No. 3, 2017.
  58. Lee, Hyoung Keun, "A Comparative Study on Subordinate Statutes Concerning a Defense Counsel's Participation in an Interrogation", Korean Lawyers Association Journal, Vol. 69, No. 3, 2020. https://doi.org/10.17007/KLAJ.2020.69.3.003
  59. Lee, Jae-Sang, Cases of Criminal Procedure, Park-Young Publishing Company, 2013.
  60. Lee, Sanghoon, "A Study on Legislative Improvement Plan for Confidentiality of Communication between Lawyers and Clients in Criminal Procedures", Chungnam Law Review, Vol. 33, No. 2, 2022.
  61. Lee, Sanghoon, "A Study on Protecting Confidentiality of Communications between an Attorney and the Client - Focusing on the Criminal Proceedings", Judicial Policy Research Institute, 2022.
  62. Lee, Sanghoon, "A Study on Protecting Confidentiality of Communications between an Attorney and the Client", Judicial Policy Research Institute, 2022.
  63. Lee, Tae-Young, "Lawyer's Duty of Confidentiality", Human Right and Justice, Vol. 469, 2017.
  64. Lim, Sung Woo, International Arbitration, Bakyoungsa (2016)
  65. Lyou, Byung-Woon, "The Demarcation between Transparency and Confidentiality in International Arbitration", Seoul Law Review, Vol. 26, No. 3, 2018. https://doi.org/10.15821/SLR.2018.26.3.016
  66. Meyer-Hauser, Bernhard F., Anwaltsgeheimnis und Schiedsgericht, Schulthess Verlag (2004).
  67. Mockesch, Annabelle, Attorney-Client Privilege in International Arbitration, Oxford University Press (2017).
  68. Nam, Soojin, "Back to Fundamentals: A Closer Look at a Seoul High Court's Unsuccessful Attempt to Introduce Attorney-Client Privilege in Korea." Journal of Korean Law, Vol. 16, No. 1, 2016.
  69. Park, Chan Dong and Shin, Chang Seob, "A Study on the Duty of Confidentiality in International Commercial Arbitration", Korea International Trade Law Association, Vol. 25, No. 1, 2016.
  70. Park, Chan-Un, "Problems concerning the Right to Legal Counsel and the Presence of the Counsel during Interrogation and New Alternatives for the Improvement", Human Right and Justice, Vol. 453, 2015.
  71. Pearce, Ted P., "How to Handle Privileged Communications in International Arbitration", International Bar Association, 1 June 2023.
  72. Reiser, Rachel, "Applying Privilege in International Arbitration: The Case for a Uniform Rule." Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution, vol. 13, no. 2, 2012.
  73. Rogers, Catherine, Ethics in International Arbitration, Oxford University Press (2014).
  74. Seo Jooyeon, Yoon Jonghaeng, Cheon Haram, "A Study on the Attorney-Client Privilege", Korean Institute of Criminology, 20-AB-09, 2020.
  75. Shehata, Ibrahim, "Attorney-Client Privilege & International Arbitration", Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution, 2019.
  76. Shehata, Ibrahim, "The Standard of Attorney-Client Privilege In International Arbitration: Is The "Most Protective Law" The Right Answer?", Kluwer Arbitration Blog, 18 May 2018.
  77. Shin, Sang Min, "The Illegality of Administrative Procedure restricting the Right of Attorney to Counsel", Studies on Public Administration Cases, Vol. 24, No. 2, 2019.
  78. Shin, Seung-Nam, "Case Study of Korean-French Companies Dispute at the Arbitration Stage in the ICC Arbitral Tribunal and at the Enforcement Stage in the Korean Court", Journal of Arbitration Studies, Vol. 18, No. 1, 2008. https://doi.org/10.16998/JAS.2008.18.1.185
  79. Shin, Yi-Chul, "The Admissibility of Evidence of a Legal Review Statement Prepared by a Counsel under the Criminal Evidence Act: In relation to the introduction of the attorney-client privilege", Contemporary Review of Criminal Law, Vol. 64, 2019.
  80. Siegal, David and Scanlon, Michael, "Protecting Privileges in Cross-Border Investigations", Litigation, Vol. 42, No. 4, 2016.
  81. Sohn, Chang-Wan, "Attorney-Client Privilege in US and Protection on Communications between Attorney and Client in Korea", Human Right and Justice, Vol. 485, 2019.
  82. Chai Woo Sohng, Restriction of Authority and Power to Litigate by the In-house Counsel, Vol. 59, Law Review, Pusan National University, p. 321-345, 2018. https://doi.org/10.35275/pnulaw.2018.59.2.012
  83. The Sedona Conference, "Commentary on Cross-Border Privilege Issues", The Sedona Conference Journal, Vol. 23, No. 475, 2022.
  84. Wachter, Robert & Yoon, Grace and Lee, Han Ah, "Confidentiality in International IP Arbitration", IAM, 11 March 2021.
  85. Wachter, Robert, "Toward a codified evidentiary attorney-client privilege in Korea", Lex Mundi, 21 October 2022.
  86. Yoon, B.C. and Richardson, Joel, "The Legal System for International Arbitration of Korea", Korean Arbitration Review, No. 4, 2014.
  87. Yoon, Hye Won and Choi, Hyo-Jae, "The Right of Attorneys to Defend Their Defendants as a Basic Right: The Constitutional Court decision 2016 Hun-Ma 503, decided November 30, 2017", SNU Law Review, Vol. 9, 2019.
  88. Yoon, Jonghaeng, "What can the Republic of Korea learn from Foreign Laws of Attorney-Client Privilege", Chungnam Law Review, Vol. 32, No. 2, 2021.