Seoul Bar Association President: "Will Request Disciplinary Action Against Lawyers Joined to Legal Platforms" (Comprehensive)

Law&Company "Refutes Claims Based on False Information"

Kim Jung-wook, President of the Seoul Bar Association [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Kim Jung-wook, president of the Seoul Bar Association, stated on the 27th, "Lawyers registered on legal platforms will request disciplinary action from the Korean Bar Association in accordance with the revised lawyer advertising regulations."

At the '96th Seoul Bar Association Executive Half-Year Settlement Press Conference' held at the Bar Association Hall in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the same day, President Kim said, "Petitions requesting disciplinary action have already been submitted against about 500 members who violated the Lawyer Act through false and exaggerated advertisements on legal platforms." The revised 'Regulations on Lawyer Advertising,' which prohibit members from joining lawyer introduction platforms such as LawTalk, are set to take effect on July 4th, signaling a tough response.

Regarding legal platforms, President Kim criticized, "Private companies are misleading the public by claiming to act in their interest while maximizing profits." He added, "If brokers flood the legal market, it could undermine the fairness unique to the legal market, and if platforms simply aim to increase profitability, the damage will be passed on directly to the public." He further stated, "While platforms are convenient, we must consider whether convenience alone justifies everything." The Seoul Bar Association has long criticized legal platforms like LawTalk as being unlawful.

On the recent decision by the Bundang Police Station in Gyeonggi Province not to prosecute Naver's legal consultation service 'Knowledge Expert,' which was reported for violating the Lawyer Act, President Kim pointed out, "I believe the opinion of the Minister of Justice also played a role." Last month, Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye expressed a favorable stance on the legality of online legal services during a meeting with startup representatives, stating, "LawTalk does not violate the Lawyer Act."

Regarding the amendment to the Tax Accountant Act that removed the automatic qualification provision for new lawyers to become tax accountants, President Kim said, "If lawyers can perform tax accountant activities, it could provide the public with more choices in services," and added, "We need to consider whether it is appropriate to grant exclusive rights only to tax accountants." He emphasized, "It would be problematic if lawyers tried to monopolize a large share and exercise exclusive rights, but in reality, that is absolutely not the case."

Meanwhile, Law & Company, the operator of LawTalk, rebutted, stating, "The Seoul Bar Association is repeatedly making claims based on unfounded false facts." Law & Company said, "Including two past non-prosecution decisions and official inquiry responses, as well as the recent non-prosecution decision by Naver and positions from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, all affirm that 'LawTalk is a legal service,'" and added, "LawTalk will continue to strive to improve public access to legal services and enhance lawyers' work efficiency, undeterred by any slander or defamation."

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