One Year Since the Launch of the Sangsaeng Adjustment Committee: "Establishing Legal Grounds and Focusing on Expertise"

Park Young-sun, Chairperson of the Win-Win Coordination Committee, is speaking about the realization of a fair economy.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daeseop] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 23rd that the 'Win-Win Mediation Committee,' launched last June as a joint inter-ministerial initiative, has gained legal grounds after about a year.

The Win-Win Mediation Committee was established as a joint inter-ministerial organization to act as a connector for voluntary agreements between large and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs), facilitating rapid damage relief through 'mediation and arbitration' and promoting inter-ministerial collaboration on fair trade policies.

At the Cabinet meeting held at the Blue House on the same day, the presidential decree titled 'Regulations on the Establishment and Operation of the Win-Win Mediation Committee,' which stipulates matters related to the establishment, composition, and operation of the committee, was approved.

According to the operational regulations, the Win-Win Mediation Committee will deliberate on matters related to linking reports, complaints, and accusations concerning unfair acts in consignment transactions and technology disputes through mediation and arbitration, as well as inter-ministerial cooperation on fair trade policies.

The committee is composed of up to 17 members, including the Minister of SMEs and Startups as the chairperson, representatives from the Fair Trade Commission, Supreme Prosecutors' Office, National Police Agency, Korean Intellectual Property Office, related ministries in fair economy, representatives from large and SME business associations, legal professionals, and academia.

Since its launch on June 27 last year, the Win-Win Mediation Committee has held a total of four meetings. Through these meetings, it reviewed 25 mediation and arbitration cases, successfully mediating five of them. Notably, seven cases under investigation by the Prosecutors' Office were referred to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' 'Technology Dispute Mediation and Arbitration Committee.'

Additionally, three joint inter-ministerial measures, including the 'Joint Investigation Promotion Plan for Technology Infringement Cases,' and three single-ministry measures, such as the 'Investigation Cooperation Plan for Technology Theft Cases,' were announced to discuss cooperation strategies among ministries regarding unfair trade and technology theft. In particular, the Korean Intellectual Property Office has concretized the collaboration plans discussed at the Win-Win Mediation Committee into a pilot project called the 'Inter-Ministerial Technology Assessment Support Project.'

Park Jongchan, Director of the Win-Win Cooperation Policy Division at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, "With the establishment of operational regulations for the Win-Win Mediation Committee securing institutional stability, we plan to further concentrate government capabilities and private sector expertise to support the prompt relief of damages for SMEs. Moving forward, we will actively encourage voluntary mediation and arbitration of unfair trade cases and further spread a voluntary win-win cooperation atmosphere between large and small-to-medium enterprises to realize a fair economy."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.