Chronicle 2011-12

Here are the previous news during the period 2011-2012, which was moved from News of interest to Foreign Readers.

The news reports in the years of 2013 and 2014 are available here.

News in 2011

 * According to Chosun Ilbo dated of June 21, 2011, all court decisions will be disclosed via the Internet when the Civil Procedure Act and the Penal Procedure Act are amended respectively by the National Assembly (NA) in June. The NA Judiciary Reform Special Committee is scheduled to pass the proposed amendments to the two procedure acts on June 22. An unidentified NA source said the proposal is likely to be approved by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee and the Plenary Session because the ruling party and opposition parties have few conflicting issues.
 * Since 2010, the Korean Bar Association (KBA) has argued that the whole disclosure of lower court decisions will enable the public figure out the court sentencing. A court source said that the free access to court decisions will make it possible to assess the competence of all judges in a fair and objective manner. However, for the privacy protection of parties involved in the case, the amendment is said to require the redaction of personal information by the time of entry into force in 2015. KBA sources said that the Supreme Court is in a position to disclose most of court decisions step-by-step by securing budget necessary to conduct redaction of personal and sensitive data.
 * On Sept. 28, new Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae, was inaugurated, declaring continued judiciary reforms to regain citizens’ trust.
 * On Sept. 29, the Constitutional Court ruled the provision of the Foreign Workers Employment Act constitutional, which prohibits foreign workers from changing workplaces more than three times. The claimants argued such provision violated the freedom of choice of vocation and the fundamental right to pursue happiness regardless of nationality.
 * On Oct. 6, Seoul High Court declared that Lone Star, U.S.-based private equity fund, guilty of stock manipulation, and fined 25 billion won ($20.9 million). The long-awaited court decision would force LSF to sell the ownership of KEB.
 * Korea has just unveiled mega deals to export three submarines to Indonesia, and to start billions of dollars of development projects at Yongsan, currently occupied for the use of US military bases.
 * On Oct. 13, Lone Star was reported to decide not to appeal the Seoul High Court decision which held LSF guilty of stock manipulation. Lone Star’s decision is expected to accelerate the year-long acquisition of KEB by Hana Financial Group.
 * On Oct. 14, a U.S. hedge fund founder was sentenced to eleven years in prison, the longest ever imposed for insider trading, which brought the insider trading cases in Korea into the spotlight.
 * On Oct. 13, US Congress approved FTA with S. Korea in an unusually speedy legislative process on the occasion of the state visit of President Lee (pictured).
 * On Oct. 21, FSS warned that a new instant scam message (SMS) is sent to citizens in fraud of e-banking since the new DP Act became effective. Be aware of ‘Phishing’!
 * On Oct. 26, Park Won-soon (pictured), the liberal independent activist, was elected Seoul’s mayor largely supported by SNS-connected young citizens. Tweeters and instant messages urged friends and colleagues to vote for Park, leading to an unexpectedly high voting rate.
 * On Nov. 1, ISD clause in the KorUS FTA proved a tug of war between the Ruling Party and Opposition Groups. Over the weekend ISD made the headlines of the Korean news media.
 * On Nov. 18, FSC ordered U.S. buyout fund Lone Star to sell its majority stake in KEB within six months.
 * On Nov. 29, the Fourth High Level Forum (HLF-4) on Aid Effectiveness will be held in Busan, attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (pictured) and other global leadership, to map out a new global aid and development architecture going forward.
 * On Nov. 12, Jeju Island (pictured) was named one of the New7Wonders, boosting both Jeju and Korea to the focus of world tourism.
 * On Nov. 22, the KorUS FTA was finally ratified by the National Assembly with a surprise floor vote in the midst of a tear gas attack by an opposition lawmaker.
 * On Nov. 30, the Fourth High Level Forum (HLF-4) was closed after adopting the Busan Declaration to create a new, inclusive partnership to use the billions of dollars donated each year to hasten the development of poor countries.
 * On Dec. 10, Police have concluded that the Oct. 26 by-election-day cyberattack (DDos) against the National Election Commission’s Website was staged solely by a driver of the Ruling Party representative.
 * On Dec. 19, North Korea announced that Supreme Leader Kim Jong-il had died of heart attack two days ago. North Korea watchers say his unexpected death could lead to power struggle between his son and successor Jong-un and military power groups.
 * On Dec. 27, the year-long debate over the investigation right between the police and prosecutors has been finally settled by a new decree resolved by the State Council.
 * On Dec. 29, the Constitutional Court ruled the current Election Law prohibiting pre-election campaigning via social networking services (SNS) was unconstitutional, paving the way to "SNS as an influential political leverage".

News in 2012

 * On Jan. 10, UNCITRAL opened its first regional center for Asia and the Pacific (pictured) at Incheon, Korea.
 * Since the Lunar New Year holidays, a film "Broken Arrow" (pictured) has recorded a mega hit, and the Judiciary is concerned about the enthusiatic public response which might lead to mistrust in the court system.
 * On Jan. 27, FSC finally allowed Hana Financial Group to acquire KEB from Lone Star.
 * On Feb. 8, the opposition parties vowed to nullify the KorUS FTA when they win the general and presidential elections this year at a rally in front of the US Embassy in Seoul. The KorUS FTA will come into force on March 15, 2012.
 * On Feb. 16, it was disclosed that McDermott, Will & Emery and Clifford Chance will open Seoul offices in the first half this year.
 * On Feb. 22, the President of the Constitutional Court urged the National Assembly to swiftly fill a seven-month-long vacant seat on its nine-member bench after lawmakers rejected a nomination earlier this month.
 * On Feb. 27, the National Assembly increases the number of lawmakers to 300 out of gerrymandering of constituencies.
 * On Mar. 15, the KorUS FTA takes effect. Korea becomes the only Asian country to have implemented FTAs with the European Uniton and the United States.
 * On Mar. 23, the Ministry of Justice disclosed that 87 percent of 1,665 applicants - graduates of nation-wide 25 law schools have passed the first American-type bar exam. Kyung Hee Law School announced 100 percent success of its first graduates.
 * On Apr. 2, it was disclosed the number of foreign patients visiting Korea has been growing at an annual rate over 30% since 2009.
 * On Apr. 7, the dispute over who should pay the keun mortgage creation fee seemed increasingly heated as the banks rejected the demand of the affected bank customers.
 * On Apr. 11, the ruling Saenuri Party has won 152 seats of the 300-member National Assembly |home|top after so many neck and neck races.
 * On Apr. 16, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, Korean-American, was elected President of the World Bank to replace Robert Zoellick.
 * As of Apr. 17, tens of thousands of Koreans filed an online petition with the White House demanding the US textbook publishers refer to the "East Sea" together with the "Sea of Japan." Japanese Internet users began to fight back.
 * On May 2, Samsung Everland, de facto holding company of Samsung Group, is reportedly going to acquire its unlisted 400 thousand shares up to 760 billion won.
 * On May 2, Korea started negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement with China, its largest trading partner after five years of joint research.
 * On May 6, FSC suspended the operations of four savings banks for six months on account of poor lending practices and management.
 * On May 24, the Supreme Court ruled that Japanese companies must compensate Korean victims of forced labor during the period from 1941 to 1944.
 * On June 20, worries are escalating over the probable paralysis of the Supreme Court if the National Assembly fails to confirm four Justice-candidates by July 10.
 * As from July 1, Sejong City has started as a wide-area autonomous entity after so many ups and downs since 2003.
 * On July 15, three foreign law firms - Ropes & Gray, Sheppard Mullin and Clifford Chance - were allowed to offer foreign legal consultant services in Korea for the first time.
 * On July 18, |home|newslist1 KFTC investigated 9 banks and 10 securities companies on suspicion of colluding to keep CD rates high. If Korean financial institutions are found guilty and consequently the CD rates are found to be invalid, foreign investors in derivatives might take legal action. In addition, foreigners would be far more likely to divest from Korean derivatives.
 * On Aug. 1, the National Assembly approved to confirm three Justices ending 22 days of judicial delay. One vacancy still remains on the court bench of the Supreme Court as well as the Constitutional Court.
 * On Aug. 6, the Government has retained Bae, Kim & Lee and Arnold & Porter for the upcoming ISD filed by Lone Star, which will be represented by Shin & Kim and Sidley Austin.
 * On Aug. 10, President Lee Myung-bak's sudden visit to Dokdo Islets embarassed Japan which would take the issue to the International Court of Justice.
 * On Aug. 23, the Constitutional Court held unanimously that the real name requirement imposed on big portal service providers by the statute is unconstitutional.
 * As Korean society is shocked by heinous sexual violence against children, the furious public are calling for such hardline measures as capital execution, castration, random police questioning on street, crack-down on child abuse porn, etc.
 * The Supreme Court announced its plan to make public all the lower criminal court cases subject to necessary redaction as from January 1, 2013 once it has been finally fixed thereafter pursuant to Article 59-3 of the Criminal Procedure Act. The civil action cases will be disclosed at the Supreme Court website pursuant to Article 163-2 of the Civil Procedure Act as from January 1, 2015.
 * On Sep. 20, Seoul International Dispute Resolution Center obtained the government approval as a public interest juristic person to provide an efficient facility for international ADR, and will start its service from February 2013 at the Global Tower, Seorin-dong, Seoul.
 * The government is under fire for its poor and slow reaction to the |home|newslist1 gas leak at a chemical plant in the Gumi Complex on Sep. 27 that killed five plant workers, injured more than a thousand and caused serious crop damage.
 * On Oct. 5, the court ruled that it is not illegal for |home|newslist1 the government to keep electricity rates low as a way of taming inflation and dismissed two separate suits filed by Kepco’s small investors.
 * On Oct. 20, Korea won its bid to house the |home|newslist1 UN Green Climate Fund at Songdo, Incheon (pictured) defeating strong rival Germany.
 * On Nov. 5, with regard to the alleged illicit purchase of land to build Lee Myung-bak’s retirement home in southern Seoul, the |home|newslist1 First Lady was reportedly to be questioned by the special prosecutor over her involvement in the scandal.
 * On Nov. 13, the government designated the Ministry of Environment as authorities to enforce the Act on Allocation and Trading of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Allowances.
 * On Nov. 20, the number of tourists visiting Korea is likely to exceed 10 million.
 * On Nov. 22, Lone Star filed an ISD against the Korean government with ICSID under the World Bank because of |home|newslist1 Defendant's interference in its sale of KEB.
 * On Nov. 30, Christmas season has just started with Christmas trees (pictured) and Salvation Army's donation pots.
 * On Dec. 2, the National Policy Agency announced the enforcement of the wholly amended Minor Offences Act including stalking as from March 22, 2013.
 * On Dec. 3, Prosecutor General Han Sang-dae was forced to resign in the midst of one after another scandals in the public prosecution.
 * On Dec. 6, Arirang, Korean folk song, was finally listed on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
 * On Dec. 19, Park Geun-hye, daughter of ex-President Park Chung Hee was elected as President of the Republic of Korea by consolidating conservative base in the presidential election.
 * Early in 2013, the restoration of the new South Gate (pictured) is expected to be completed after it burnt down in February 2008.