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Jipyong News|KOREA LEGAL INSIGHT

2025 in Review & 2026 Outlook

2026.01.05

Introduction
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The following are some of the most notable legal developments in Korea in 2025 and Jipyong’s outlook for the year 2026.</div>
 
 
M&A and Corporate 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="80%">The 2025 M&A market in Korea showed clear signs of recovery led by mid- to large-scale deals in the AI, TMT, energy, and healthcare sectors.  Transactions involving corporate restructuring, sale of non-core assets, private equity-led deals, acquisition of tech assets (e.g., platforms and data), and foreign </td>
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			<td align="left" colspan="2" valign="top">investment experienced notable growth.  However, regulatory concerns relating to foreign direct investment and competition, interest rate volatility, and valuation discounts continued to serve as constraints.  Acquiring or selling tech companies became more complicated due to strengthened export controls for national core technologies (NCT) and heightened review standards in many jurisdictions.</td>
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			Looking ahead to 2026, it is anticipated that the M&A market will continue to grow as interest rates stabilize and the demand for industrial restructuring rises.  Demand for legal advisory work is expected to rise particularly with respect to deals that simultaneously involve group-wide corporate restructuring efforts, M&A of tech companies, and influx of foreign capital.  Demand for legal advisory work is also expected to increase in areas requiring highly specialized expertise – such as warranty and indemnity (W&I) insurance, FDI review response, post-merger integration (PMI) structuring, and governance risk management.</td>
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Antitrust & Competition 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="80%">This year was marked by key developments in Korean competition law concerning the regulation of online platforms and “self-preferencing” conduct.  Jipyong’s Antitrust & Competition Practice Group successfully represented some of Korea’s largest online platforms in two landmark decisions concerning these issues.  </td>
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			In May, the Seoul High Court issued a ruling annulling the KFTC’s imposition of a KRW 27.1 billion penalty surcharge on Kakao Mobility for allegedly modifying its ride dispatch algorithm to favor drivers affiliated with Kakao Mobility over other drivers.  The court held that Kakao Mobility’s conduct did not amount to an abuse of market dominance, finding no evidence of discriminatory practices or anticompetitive effect.  In October, Korea’s Supreme Court reversed and remanded the lower court’s decision affirming the KFTC’s imposition of a KRW 26.7 billion penalty surcharge on Naver for allegedly modifying its search algorithm to favor its own products over those of sellers on Naver’s platform.  The Supreme Court held that Naver’s modification of search algorithms did not amount to an abuse of market dominance.  These two decisions were widely reported in Korean media as critical cases that may lead to behavioral changes in all online platforms operating in Korea.</td>
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			In 2026, the KFTC is expected to increase its efforts to regulate (i) internal transactions within corporate groups, (ii) subcontracts, franchises, and other relationships of unequal bargaining power, and (iii) online platform operators.  Companies operating in Korea should be mindful of such direction of the KFTC’s policy and increase its compliance efforts accordingly.</td>
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Global Dispute Resolution 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="80%">This year, the international arbitration market saw accelerated adoption of AI and other digital technologies, with many key arbitral institutions introducing their own case management platforms and pushing users to utilize the same.  Investment disputes in the energy and technology sectors have increased,</td>
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			<td align="left" colspan="2" valign="top">particularly those relating to renewable energy and global supply chains.  Also, evaluating the prospects of recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards has become a central element of case strategy amid geopolitical uncertainty.</td>
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			Looking ahead, the above trends are expected to continue and intensify in 2026.  Key priorities for businesses involved in cross-border disputes should consider establishing AI guidelines for arbitral processes, enhancing navigation of complex global regulatory regimes, and designing cost-efficient procedures.  Notably, KCAB’s new rules come into effect on January 1, introducing a digital platform, provisions for AI use, an institutionalized “court”, and expedited and fast-track procedures.</td>
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Labor & Employment 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="60%">In the first half of 2025, there was a general slowdown in litigation and advisory activity relating to Korea’s labor and employment laws largely due to domestic political uncertainties.  In the second half of the year, demand for</td>
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			<td align="left" colspan="2" valign="top">legal advisory services for labor and employment issues increased driven by the new administration’s worker-protection policies, amendments to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act(‘Trade Union Act’), and increased importance for establishing compliance guidelines for the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act.</td>
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			In 2026, litigation and advisory work related to the amended Trade Union Act (which will come into effect on March 2026) is expected to increase significantly across all industries.  Policy and legislative initiatives on key labor issues—such as reform of working hours, extension of the mandatory retirement age, and a ban on all-inclusive wage arrangements—together with strengthened labor inspection through increased labor inspector headcount, are expected to drive growth in advisory and litigation demand concerning employment relations and industrial safety.</td>
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Construction & Real Estate 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="80%">In 2025, the Korean construction and real estate market saw an expansion in both the volume and complexity of legal disputes, driven by financial pressures, rising costs, and a shifting regulatory landscape.  The first half of the year brought some clarity as first instance courts issued several important</td>
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			<td align="left" colspan="2" valign="top">judgments relating to distressed Project Financing (PF) sites.  However, the second half of 2025 saw a new wave of litigation as investor-buyers, impacted by the real estate downturn, filed numerous lawsuits to cancel contracts, creating uncertainty even for secure projects.</td>
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			The outlook for 2026 suggests that while market conditions may gradually recover due to stabilized interest rates and policy-driven liquidity support, the transition may fuel further disputes.  The primary legal challenges are expected to be “interest-adjustment” and “structural-reorganization” conflicts, manifesting as disputes over contract cancellations, financial settlements, and transfers of legal status.  Legal conflicts will increasingly arise from negotiations over increased construction costs, adjustments to liability scopes, and changes to contract terms.  Disputes concerning procedural legitimacy and authority between development associations and project companies are also expected to persist, particularly in the urban redevelopment sector.</td>
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Insurance 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="80%">In 2025, the insurance industry faced a significant institutional and regulatory challenge in response to technological innovations and consumer-focused issues, which included digital transformation, AI, electronic claims for indemnity medical insurance, the encouragement of insurance fraud</td>
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			<td align="left" colspan="2" valign="top">reporting, and consumer protection.  From a product perspective, demand for health insurance, long-term care insurance, and insurance claim trusts rose in response to an aging population and an increase in cases of pre-existing conditions, prompting insurance companies to develop tailored products.  The pet insurance market also saw notable growth, and major personal data breaches underscored the importance of cyber insurance and liability insurance covering personal information.</td>
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			It is expected that the market trends in the upcoming year will continue to be influenced by how timely and appropriately insurance companies address the aforementioned issues.  Regarding products, insurance covering individuals with pre-existing conditions, long-term care, and health are expected to be the primary driver of growth.  In contrast, profitability pressures are projected to increase for traditional products that have high loss ratios, such as automobile insurance.</td>
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Pharmaceutical, Medical Device & Healthcare 
 
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			<td align="left" style="padding-right: 0px;text-align: left" valign="top" width="80%">The pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have undergone a sustained period of stagnation due to challenges of a rapidly volving global market, financially demanding and long-term nature of new drug development, and funding shortages.  However, as the current administration has recently</td>
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			<td align="left" colspan="2" valign="top">unveiled a plan to support the revitalization of these sectors—setting a goal to position the nation among the top five bio-powers in the world—the industry is anticipating renewed momentum.</td>
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			The administration’s policy support is expected to drive an increase in the research, development, and market launch of products based on new technologies, as well as growth in associated transactions such as contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) and exports.  The support framework will be built on several key initiatives, including support for AI-driven new drug development, the easing of clinical trial regulations, a predictable and rational drug pricing system, expanded tax and financial assistance, and strengthened competitiveness in the global CDMO and biosimilar markets. 
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