SOUTH KOREA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jeena Kim, Kyunghwan Lee, Eunyoung Row and Bochan Kim, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC
The Specific Crimes Act Article 3 of the Specific Crimes Act applies to non-public officials with influence over public officials, and offers stricter penalties than the Criminal Act. It expands the scope of influence- peddling to include any individual, regardless of public official status, who mediates influences with respect to public officials’ duties, and who in turn accepts, demands or promises to receive money or benefits in exchange for such media - tion – this is punishable by imprisonment for up to five years or with a fine of up to KRW10 mil - lion. The Attorney-at-Law Act Article 111 of the Attorney-at-Law Act seeks to address corruption in public administration or legal proceedings, particularly where public officials’ roles are involved. It punishes anyone who receives, promises to receive, or causes a third party to provide money, goods, enter - tainment or other benefits under the pretence of making requests or arrangements related to matters handled by public officials, or anyone who offers or promises to offer such benefits to others, subject to imprisonment for up to five years or to a fine of up to KRW10 million. Overlap and Redundancy in Legislation Article 132 of the Criminal Act has become almost obsolete due to the broader and stricter provisions under the Specific Crimes Act and the Attorney-at-Law Act. These laws largely cover similar offences, leading to calls for legislative reform to consolidate the laws and improve clar - ity in their application. Influence-Peddling in International Contexts (FBPA) The FBPA does not explicitly address influence- peddling involving foreign officials. However, Article 3(2) of the FBPA penalises third-party
bribery where money or benefits are given to a third party intending to bribe a foreign official. In any event, this provision focuses on third-party bribery rather than influence-peddling. The Graft Act Article 5 of the Graft Act prohibits any form of improper solicitation to public servants, wheth - er made directly or indirectly. This prohibition applies universally, including to foreign nation - als, and is enforced regardless of whether an economic benefit is offered or promised in connection with the solicitation. The following actions are classified as improper solicitations and are strictly prohibited: • requesting unauthorised facilitation of tasks, such as granting permits, licences, approvals or other statutory authorisations; • seeking mitigation or waiver of administrative penalties, including taxes, fines, charges or surcharges; • attempting to influence decisions related to recruitment, employment, promotion or assignment of public officials; • requesting disclosure of confidential job-relat - ed information, such as tender processes, auctions, patents, military operations or taxa - tion, in violation of laws; • soliciting the selection or exclusion of specific individuals, organisations or entities as con - tracting parties in breach of statutory rules; and • intervening in public institution processes, including assessments, judgments or certifi - cations, to unlawfully influence or manipulate outcomes in violation of applicable laws or regulations. 2.3 Financial Record-Keeping Article 39(1) of the Act on External Audit of Stock Companies provides that if an individual who
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