Bar Association Files Second Disciplinary Action Request Against 28 Lawyers Joined with 'Lotok'... Lotok Expresses Strong Regret Over Constitutional Court Decision Distortion

The Bar Association to Hold Public Briefing on Constitutional Court Decision Tomorrow Morning at Bar Association Hall

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] The Constitutional Court has ruled some provisions of the "Regulations on Lawyer Advertising" (hereinafter referred to as the Advertising Regulations) created by the Korean Bar Association (KBA) unconstitutional. Following this decision, the KBA has initiated additional disciplinary procedures against lawyers registered with Lotok, as previously announced.

On the 30th, the KBA held its 65th Standing Board of Directors meeting and resolved to request the commencement of disciplinary action against 28 Lotok-registered lawyers who were referred to a special investigation committee for alleged violations of the Attorney-at-Law Act and the Advertising Regulations and have completed their investigations. This is the second disciplinary request following the first request on the 11th against 25 Lotok-registered lawyers.

The KBA stated that this action was taken pursuant to Article 23(2)(7) of the Attorney-at-Law Act (Advertising), Articles 9(3) and 9(4) of the Disciplinary Rules for Lawyers, among others.

Article 23(2)(7) of the Attorney-at-Law Act prohibits "advertisements whose methods or content harm the public nature of lawyers, disrupt fair order in accepting cases, or are likely to cause harm to consumers, as determined by the Korean Bar Association."

Additionally, those subject to the disciplinary requests are accused of violating Article 5(2)(1) (leaflets) and Article 5(2)(2) of the Advertising Regulations, which the Constitutional Court upheld on the 26th, as well as Article 31(4) of the Code of Ethics for Lawyers.

The KBA said, "With the constitutional controversies surrounding the Advertising Regulations resolved by the Constitutional Court's decision, we request the commencement of the second disciplinary action to maintain fair order in case acceptance and prevent further harm to legal consumers."

Immediately after the KBA's announcement of the second disciplinary request against Lotok-registered lawyers, Lotok's operator, Law&Company, issued a statement to reporters expressing "strong regret that the Korean Bar Association is pushing forward with disciplinary requests against Lotok member lawyers despite receiving an unconstitutional ruling from the Constitutional Court due to unreasonable amendments to the regulations."

Law&Company criticized, "The KBA has disregarded three investigation results over seven years, the Fair Trade Commission's investigation, the Ministry of Justice's authoritative interpretation, and now even distorts the final decision of the Constitutional Court. If a lawyers' organization is judged to have infringed on lawyers' fundamental rights, the attitude that should have been shown first is an apology, not the enforcement of disciplinary actions."

Law&Company further stated, "The Constitutional Court declared the core provisions banning Lotok unconstitutional. In particular, the Court clearly stated that 'prohibiting the use of platforms that do not violate the Attorney-at-Law Act infringes on lawyers' freedom of occupation and expression.'"

"Therefore, the grounds for the KBA's disciplinary actions have lost both their validity and justification. Nevertheless, we are deeply dismayed by the KBA's stance to disregard the spirit of the Constitutional Court's decision and proceed with disciplinary actions," they added.

Finally, Law&Company emphasized, "The KBA's insistence on enforcing disciplinary procedures is a dogmatic act resulting from a self-serving interpretation of the Constitutional Court's ruling and will remain a shameful record."

Previously, the Constitutional Court ruled unconstitutional parts of the lawyer advertising regulations challenged by Law&Company and 60 lawyers in a constitutional complaint case. These included Article 4(14) concerning "advertisements contrary to the association's authoritative interpretation," Article 5(2)(1) regarding "acts of advertising, promoting, or introducing lawyers," and Article 8(2)(4) concerning "acts conducted for the purpose or means of violating the association's authoritative interpretation."

The Court found these provisions violated the constitutional principles of proportionality and legal reservation, infringing on the petitioners' freedom of expression and occupational freedom.

With the Constitutional Court's ruling declaring unconstitutional the prohibition on requesting advertisements from those who receive advertising fees under Article 5(2)(1) of the Advertising Regulations, the seven-year-long conflict between the KBA and Lotok seemed to come to a close.

However, controversy continues as the day after the ruling, the KBA stated, "The Constitutional Court upheld the constitutionality of the Advertising Regulations and recognized the constitutional legitimacy of the KBA's disciplinary actions against Lotok-registered lawyers," and announced it would continue disciplinary procedures against Lotok-registered lawyers.

In this situation, the KBA will hold a public briefing titled "The Meaning of the Constitutional Court Decision on Lawyer Advertising Regulations and the Necessity of Disciplinary Requests" at 10 a.m. on the 31st in the large auditorium on the 14th floor of the KBA building in Yeoksam-dong, Seoul, for members and various media outlets.

The KBA said the event was organized to resolve misunderstandings and confusion surrounding the Constitutional Court decision and the Advertising Regulations and to help the public and media gain an accurate understanding.

Amid criticism from the legal community that the KBA is distorting the intent of the Constitutional Court's unconstitutional ruling, attention is focused on what arguments the KBA will present to persuade the public.

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