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Kim & Chang

kimchang.com ↗

South Korea's largest law firm, leading M&A and litigation for Samsung, SK, and other chaebols.

Hard to displace
Assessed 26 July 2026 · Evidence as of 26 July 2026
Strong structural protection; the business model survives ai pressure.
On the recordSince 26 July 2026 · Checkable from late 2026 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: AI Framework Act enforcement guidance and next Chambers Asia-Pacific ranking cycle
The call

Kim & Chang keeps growing faster than its rivals combined, protected by licensing rules and chaebol ties that AI and domestic competitors have not yet found a way around.

Kim & Chang is South Korea's largest law firm by size and revenue, handling major legal work for the country's biggest companies like Samsung and SK. It is hard to replace because only Korean-licensed lawyers can work in Korean courts, the firm has decades-long relationships with huge clients on their most important deals, and it has hired many former government officials who understand the rules inside out. The big question is whether Kim & Chang will build the same internal AI tools that rival firms like Yulchon and Sejong have announced, since AI could start handling routine legal work and squeeze profits if Kim & Chang falls behind on that front.

Why
01
AI pressure: Harvey and similar legal AI tools (already used by A&O Shearman, Ashurst, Moritz). AI speeds up document review and drafting; Kim & Chang sells this to clients as advisory rather than losing work to it. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: Yulchon, Sejong, Daeryun (domestic rivals building internal AI tools like iYUL). Rivals are building proprietary AI tools to close the revenue-per-lawyer gap, but none has shipped results that dent Kim & Chang's lead. Could a giant copy it? No, they are blocked.
03
What protects it. Only Korean-licensed lawyers can appear in Korean courts or sign filings, and decades of chaebol relationships keep bet-the-company work in house.
What would change this call
Yulchon, Sejong, or Daeryun publicly disclose RPL or margin gains from iYUL or internal AI tools. Would show a domestic rival converting AI into a real cost or pricing advantage.
Samsung or SK expands in-house legal teams into bet-the-company M&A or litigation work. Would show chaebol insourcing moving beyond routine work into Kim & Chang's core mandates.
Chambers or Legal 500 2027 rankings show Kim & Chang losing Band 1 status in multiple Korea categories. Would show erosion of the firm's top-tier reputation versus domestic peers.
Key numbers
  • Revenue about KRW 1.7 trillion in 2025, up 13% year over year (2026-01-26)
  • Revenue per lawyer about KRW 1.488B, roughly 2x the Big Four average (2026-01-26)
  • About 1,142 lawyers, up 39 from the prior year (2026-01-26)
Named risks
  • Chaebol clients like Samsung and SK Hynix insourcing M&A legal work in house. Severity: medium
  • Regulatory scrutiny of revolving door ex FTC and ex NTS hires after Feb 2026 audit finding. Severity: medium
  • Client pressure to cut fees by using LLMs instead of billable human hours on commodity work. Severity: medium
  • Rivals Yulchon, Sejong, Daeryun shipping internal AI tools while Kim & Chang stays client facing only. Severity: low
Rivals, as read in July 2026
RivalDirectionEvidence
Yulchongaining onBuilt proprietary AI case law tool iYUL and leads Big Four in revenue per lawyer at KRW 760M, reported 2026-07-06
Bae Kim & Lee, Shin & Kim, Lee & KocontestingEach posted KRW 430 to 440B revenue in 2025 versus Kim & Chang's KRW 1.7T, per Chosun Biz, 2026-01-26
Samsung and SK Hynix in house legal teamsgaining onExpanding in house M&A hiring foreign lawyers, reported 2026-06-25, threatens outsourced mandates
A&O Shearman and Ashurst (Harvey AI deployment)contestingGlobal peers deployed Harvey firmwide for M&A drafting, cited as benchmark, 2026-07-06
Questions people ask
Is Kim & Chang profitable and how large is its revenue in 2025?
Kim & Chang generated an estimated KRW 1.7 trillion (about $1.2B) in revenue in 2025, up 13% from roughly KRW 1.5 trillion in 2024, making it South Korea's largest law firm by revenue, per Chosun Biz reporting dated January 26, 2026.
Could AI replace Kim & Chang's lawyers?
Unlikely for core work. Only Korean licensed attorneys can appear in court or sign regulatory filings, and Kim & Chang led Samsung Chairman Lee Jae-yong's Supreme Court acquittal. It launched an AI Financial Risk Consulting Center in June 2026 to sell AI-risk advisory rather than being displaced by AI.
Who owns Kim & Chang?
Kim & Chang is a privately held partnership law firm with no public shareholders, parent company, or ticker. It was founded in 1973 by Young Moo Kim and has grown organically through retained partner earnings, per Wikipedia dated January 29, 2026.
Who is Kim & Chang's biggest competitor?
Its closest domestic rivals are Bae Kim & Lee, Shin & Kim, Lee & Ko, and Yulchon, but each had 2025 revenue near KRW 400 to 440 billion versus Kim & Chang's KRW 1.7 trillion, roughly double the combined Big Four's average revenue per lawyer, per Chosun Biz, January 26, 2026.
Are Samsung and SK Hynix taking legal work away from Kim & Chang?
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix were reported in June 2026 to be actively expanding in-house M&A teams and recruiting foreign lawyers and ex-consultants, a chaebol insourcing trend that could erode some outsourced mandates historically handled by Kim & Chang.
Does Kim & Chang have its own internal AI tools like rival Korean law firms?
As of mid-2026, Kim & Chang's public AI initiatives center on client-facing advisory, such as its June 2026 AI Financial Risk Consulting Center, while rivals Yulchon (iYUL), Sejong, and Daeryun have publicized proprietary internal AI drafting and research tools.
Timeline
  • 2026-06-25Samsung, SK Hynix reported expanding in house M&A teams, hiring foreign lawyers
  • 2026-06-24Kim & Chang launches AI Financial Risk Consulting Center with about 100 staff
  • 2026-05-08Kim & Chang hosts seminar on agentic AI security and liability issues
  • 2026-02-25Audit finds ex FTC commissioner at Kim & Chang failed to recuse from FTC vote
  • 2026-01-26Kim & Chang reported at KRW 1.7 trillion revenue, 1,142 lawyers, Chambers Band 1 in 17 of 19 categories
  • 2026-01-22South Korea's AI Framework Act takes effect
  • 2025-06-09Seoul legaltech forum: clients complain firms overcharge using humans instead of LLMs
  • 1973Kim & Chang founded by Young Moo Kim
Head to head
Kim & Chang vs Yoon & Yang
Revision history
26 July 2026
First assessed. Hard to displace. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
In the same band
Yoon & YangYulchon LLCDentons Rodyk & Davidson
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