Kim & Chang


Kim & Chang is the largest law firm in South Korea by headcount, with over 1,200 professionals.
The firm employs a number of attorneys educated, trained, and licensed in overseas jurisdictions, coming from the United States, Japan, China, and countries throughout Europe. Approximately 20 percent of its lawyers are foreign-qualified, and it has a division of around 200 personnel devoted to Japan-related practice. In addition to attorneys, the firm employs patent attorneys, tax attorneys, economists, and industry-specific experts.
In October 2016, Kim & Chang was included in the world’s top 100 law firms announced by the U.S. law magazine The American Lawyer. The magazine drew up the list based on global law firms’ 2015 revenue and Kim & Chang ranked 59th with $686 million. It was the first time for a Korean law firm to join the world’s top 100 list. In 2017, the firm posted a revenue of 1.01 trillion won, becoming Korea’s first law firm to set a revenue milestone of 1 trillion won.

History

Kim & Chang was founded by attorney Young Moo Kim in 1973. Kim had studied in the United States for several years, obtaining a Master of Comparative Law degree from the University of Chicago Law School in 1967 and a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School in 1970. Based on his experience, he sought to create a Korean law firm that followed American standards of legal service, and was the first recruiter of foreign attorneys in Korea. Once Kim established the firm in January 1973, a former judge and Kim's longtime friend, Soo Kil Chang joined later that year.

Recognition & Awards