Bar Association Initiates Disciplinary Action Against 200 Lawyers Not Leaving Lotok... Lotok Calls It "Unfair Discipline" (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The Korean Bar Association has begun procedures to discipline about 200 lawyers who have not withdrawn from legal platforms such as 'Lotok'.

According to the legal community on the 26th, the Bar Association recently held an executive board meeting and referred about 200 lawyers who have not withdrawn from Lotok to a special investigation committee.

The special investigation committee was launched earlier this month to investigate whether lawyers registered on legal platforms have violated the Attorney-at-Law Act, the Attorney Ethics Charter, and regulations on lawyer advertising, and to refer them for disciplinary action.

After receiving explanations, the special investigation committee plans to forward lawyers deemed to have disciplinary grounds to the disciplinary committee.

This year, the Bar Association revised the regulations on lawyer advertising and the Attorney Ethics Charter to prohibit lawyers from using legal platforms, stating that violations would result in disciplinary action.

Initially, 1,440 lawyers were reported for using Lotok, and it is known that only about 200 of them have not yet withdrawn.

Meanwhile, Lotok expressed "deep regret" over the Bar Association's disciplinary procedures.

Lotok stated, "Government agencies such as the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and the Ministry of Science and ICT, as well as investigative agencies like the prosecution and police, have repeatedly recognized our service as legal," adding, "The Bar Association's disciplinary procedures directly contradict the authoritative interpretations issued eight times in the past, stating that services like Lotok are legal."

They continued, "We believe the Bar Association itself knows well that this disciplinary procedure will not actually lead to discipline," and "We will continue to actively respond to the Bar Association's unfair and illegal disciplinary threats and do our best to ensure that member lawyers do not suffer any harm."

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