WillItSurvive
Advertising and professional services · South Korea

Lee & Ko

leeko.com ↗

One of Korea's Big Four law firms, serving Samsung-era chaebol clients since 1977.

Hard to displace
Assessed 30 July 2026 · Evidence as of 30 July 2026
Strong structural protection; the business model survives ai pressure.
On the recordSince 30 July 2026 · Checkable from January 2027 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Ministry of Justice and National Tax Service full-year 2026 revenue and revenue-per-lawyer data release
The call

Lee & Ko keeps its chaebol clients and its bar-protected position, but it is growing slower and earning less per lawyer than every other member of Korea's Big Four.

Lee & Ko is one of South Korea's four biggest law firms, with about 600 to 700 lawyers handling major corporate cases for companies like Samsung and LG. It is hard to replace because Korean law can only be practiced by licensed Korean lawyers, the firm has decades of relationships with powerful clients who stick with it, and AI tools cannot argue in court or build trust with regulators the way humans can. The real question is not whether the firm survives, but whether it can match the growth rate of rivals like Kim & Chang: if Lee & Ko keeps growing at 4% per year while competitors grow at 20% or more, the firm will stay safe but become a smaller player with thinner profits and fewer partner positions available.

Why
01
AI pressure: AI legal tools like Harvey, CoCounsel, Lexis+AI. These tools can draft and review documents but cannot appear in Korean court or hold bar credentials, so they trim hours, not clients. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: Kim & Chang. Kim & Chang runs 4x the revenue and grew 13% last year, but conflict rules keep it from absorbing Lee & Ko's chaebol book. Could a giant copy it? No, they are blocked.
03
What protects it. Korean bar licensing blocks foreign and non-lawyer entrants, and decades-long ties to Samsung, LG, SK, and Korean Air keep the client base in place.
What would change this call
Jan 2027 Ministry of Justice/National Tax Service data shows Lee & Ko full-year growth still near 4%. Confirms sustained underperformance versus Big Four peers, not a one-year blip.
Bae, Kim & Lee or Yulchon posts second straight year of double-digit growth while Lee & Ko stays flat. Would show durable share shift toward faster-growing Big Four rivals.
Lee & Ko announces (or fails to announce) an AI/digital research institute in H2 2026. Signals whether it is closing the efficiency gap on revenue-per-lawyer or falling further behind.
Key numbers
  • FY2025 revenue about KRW 430.9 billion (2026-01-25)
  • 608 lawyers as of January 2026 (2026-01-26)
  • Revenue per lawyer KRW 713M, lowest of Big Four (2026-01-25)
Named risks
  • Two consecutive years of ~4% growth versus Big Four peers' double-digit growth could compress partner economics. Severity: medium
  • AI-driven compression of chargeable hours (~16% per PwC 2025 survey) could pressure the leverage-based billing model. Severity: medium
  • Lowest revenue-per-lawyer among Big Four signals relative underperformance despite strong rankings. Severity: medium
  • Korean bar's authority over legal-tech marketing could be challenged again at higher courts. Severity: low
  • Structural opening of Korean legal market to foreign firms would erode regulatory moat. Severity: low
Rivals, as read in July 2026
RivalDirectionEvidence
Kim & Changlosing toKRW 1.7T 2025 revenue vs Lee & Ko's KRW 430.9B, roughly 4x larger, reported 2026-01-25
Bae Kim & Leelosing to23.4% Q1 2026 revenue growth vs Lee & Ko's ~8%, reported 2026-05-01
Yulchonlosing toKRW 760M revenue-per-lawyer vs Lee & Ko's KRW 713M, reported 2026-01-25
Shin & KimcontestingShin & Kim Q1 2026 revenue fell 4% YoY while Lee & Ko rose ~8%, reported 2026-05-01
Questions people ask
Is Lee & Ko profitable in 2026?
Lee & Ko is a private Korean law partnership, not required to disclose profit, but its FY2025 revenue was approximately KRW 430.9 billion (over $300M) across 608 lawyers, per Ministry of Justice and National Tax Service data reported January 25, 2026.
Could AI replace Lee & Ko lawyers?
No. AI tools like Harvey or CoCounsel can automate document review and drafting, roughly 16% of chargeable hours per a PwC 2025 survey, but cannot obtain Korean bar licenses, argue in court, or replicate Lee & Ko's regulator relationships built through 2025-2026 hires of ex-prosecutors and ex-FTC officials.
Who is Lee & Ko's biggest competitor?
Kim & Chang, Korea's dominant law firm since 1973, with roughly 1,142-1,200 lawyers and KRW 1.7 trillion in 2025 revenue, about four times Lee & Ko's revenue, reported January 25, 2026.
Is Lee & Ko growing or shrinking?
Lee & Ko's revenue rose about 8% year-on-year in Q1 2026 but full-year growth was only around 4%, the slowest among Korea's top six law firms, versus Bae Kim & Lee's 23.4% Q1 2026 growth, per reporting dated May 1, 2026.
Who owns Lee & Ko?
Lee & Ko is a private equity-partner-owned law firm with no public shares or outside investors; Kim Sang-gon serves as Managing Partner as of the 2025-2026 period, per Chambers directory data dated July 10, 2025.
How does Lee & Ko compare on revenue per lawyer?
Lee & Ko's revenue-per-lawyer was about KRW 713 million as of January 2026, the lowest among Korea's Big Four firms, trailing Yulchon's KRW 760 million, per Chosun Biz reporting dated January 25, 2026.
Timeline
  • 2026-05-01Reported slowest full-year growth (~4%) among Korea's top six law firms
  • 2026-03-24Reported considering dedicated AI/digital research institute
  • 2026-03-04Hired former FSC capital markets official Shin Sang-rok
  • 2026-01-25FY2025 revenue reported at KRW 430.9 billion, lowest Big Four revenue-per-lawyer
  • 2025-11-13Legal 500 credits Korean Air-Asiana M&A deal as ALB Korea Deal of the Year 2025
  • 2025-10-21Ranked top-tier in all 24 categories of Asialaw Profiles for fifth consecutive year
  • 2025-10-16Hired former NIS economic security chief Kim Seo-gon
  • 2025-09Hired former chief prosecutor Hoo Gon Kim as criminal defense head
  • 2025-07-14Earned Tier 1 ALB M&A ranking and No.1 Bloomberg/Dealsite capital markets ranking
Head to head
Lee & Ko vs Yoon & Yang
Revision history
30 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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