On January 29, 2026, Korea’s legislature passed an amendment to the Attorney-at-Law Act (the “Act”) coming into effect on February 20, 2027.  The amendment adds Article 26-2 to the Act, which codifies the attorney-client privilege (“ACP”) and the work product (“WP”) doctrine into Korea’s statutory law.  While the current Article 26 enumerates an attorney’s duty of confidentiality, it lacked language specifically protecting attorney communications and attorney work product.  This reform brings Korea closer to other jurisdictions that recognize and observe attorney-client privilege as a matter of substantive legal right.

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