Lee & Ko

I'll research Lee & Ko's IP litigation practice before drafting.

Lee & Ko — Patent Litigation Practice Summary

Firm overview. Lee & Ko (법무법인(유) 광장) is a full-service Korean law firm founded in 1977 and headquartered in Seoul (Hanjin Building, 63 Namdaemun-ro, Jung-gu), with a second domestic office in Pangyo (Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do) and overseas offices in Beijing, Ho Chi Minh City, and Hanoi. Chambers' 2026 South Korea Intellectual Property chapter — authored by Lee & Ko lawyers — describes it as "one of Korea's premier full-service law firms" and puts the IP Practice Group at approximately 140 dedicated IP trial lawyers and patent attorneys, many holding technical degrees. It is a full-service firm rather than an IP boutique. AmLaw ranks U.S. firms only, so there is no AmLaw placement; I did not find a reliable public figure for firm-wide headcount or revenue and would treat any specific number as unverified.

IP litigation specialty. The group covers patent and trademark prosecution, IP litigation, technology transactions, and trade secrets, with technical depth in electronics, semiconductors, software, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals (Chambers 2026). Both tracked U.S. matters sit squarely in that core — Xifi Networks (multi-link IEEE 802.11 Wi-Fi networking patents) and Omni MedSci (wearable optical-sensing patents) — and the firm's own case highlights cluster in the same areas: semiconductors (Eugene Technology, defending against a Japanese competitor), heavy industry/LNG (Samsung Heavy Industries), and life sciences (Samsung Bioepis v. Alexion; the Dukarb® formulation patent against 50-plus generics; the Eliquis® selection-patent injunction). Managing IP's 2026 IP Stars ranked the firm top-tier in Patent Disputes, Trademark Disputes, Copyright, and IP Transactions.

Side preference. Overwhelmingly defense-side. Both tracked appearances (2 of 2) are on the defendant side, and both are for Samsung Electronics; no plaintiff-side or NPE/PAE representation appears in the tracked data. That fits the firm's public posture of defending Korean operating companies in cross-border patent and trade secret disputes and coordinating U.S. district court and ITC matters alongside U.S. local counsel. Notably, both tracked plaintiffs — Xifi Networks and Omni MedSci — are licensing-model/non-practicing entities.

Notable tracked cases and PTAB posture. In Xifi Networks R&D, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. et al. (E.D. Tex., No. 2:24-cv-01057-JRG), Lee & Ko is tracked as lead counsel (Un Ho Kim); XiFi asserts seven Wi-Fi multi-link patents, Samsung has mounted a parallel PTAB campaign (IPR2025-01203 through -01209 and -01270, plus PGR2025-00067 through -00069), and trial is set for April 2026. In Omni MedSci, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. et al. (E.D. Tex., No. 2:24-cv-01070-JRG-RSP), Jason Kim is tracked as Korean Counsel; Omni asserts a large wearable/optical-sensor family against Samsung and co-defendants (Fossil, Oura, OnePlus), with related IPRs and PGRs pending. On PTAB specifically, the tracked matters show Lee & Ko in a supporting role to Samsung's U.S. defense teams — publicly filed petition papers list Quinn Emanuel and Ropes & Gray as lead counsel — so I could not verify a standalone count of Lee & Ko-filed U.S. IPRs/PGRs. The firm's home-forum trial practice before KIPO and the Korean Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board (IPTAB) is well documented, with multiple practitioners listing IPTAB proceedings as a core specialty.

Key partners. Hwansung Park heads the firm's Cross-Border IP Dispute Team and Discovery Team, contributed the Chambers South Korea Patent Litigation practice guide, is a vice president of KIPLA, and focuses on U.S. litigation, ITC Section 337 work, and NPE strategy. Un Ho Kim (lead counsel in Xifi) and Keum Nang Park are named Patent Stars in Managing IP's 2026 IP Stars; Keum Nang Park co-heads the Healthcare/Life Sciences group and litigates pharma and biotech patents. Jaewoo Kwak is Chambers-ranked for IP litigation, with media/entertainment and copyright strength. One caveat: IP Stars lists "Hwan Sung Park" while Chambers lists "Hwansung Park," which appear to be the same attorney under differing romanizations rather than two individuals.