Sidley Austin Brown & Wood Expands Korean Practice; Five Corporate Attorneys Join Firm in New York and Hong Kong.

Business Editors

NEW YORK and HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 2001

Sidley Austin Brown & Wood announced the addition of five experienced corporate attorneys to its Korean and Asian practice.

Nelson Ahn, partner, and Dohyong (D.H.) Kim, counsel, are resident in the firm's New York office where they focus on banking, securities and mergers and acquisitions. Jae Chul Lee, Sewon Kang and Peter Kwon, who specialize in structured finance, are resident in the firm's Hong Kong office.

"With the addition of these highly respected lawyers to our international corporate practice, we have significantly enhanced our ability to serve clients in global finance and corporate transactions, in particular the Asian market," said Ted Miller, managing partner of the firm's West Coast offices. "In addition to their expertise in handling work for clients doing business in Korea, Nelson and his colleagues represent financial institutions and corporations in cross-border transactions throughout the world."

Mr. Ahn and Mr. Kim represent a range of major Korean clients, including the Korean government and many of the country's largest financial institutions and corporations. They are currently representing Korea Asset Management Corporation in its first sale of nonperforming loans to a major U.S. investment bank. They represented a consortium of U.S. institutional investors in connection with the their investments in a large securities and asset management company, and represented a group of U.S. investors in connection with their acquisition of assets of one of Korea's largest steel companies.

The group's client roster includes European, Canadian, Asian, Latin American and U.S. financial institutions, which they represent in cross-border transactions, mergers and acquisitions and complex investment vehicles. They advise foreign banks on financial regulations and frequently speak on these topics.

"Sidley Austin Brown & Wood presented a compelling opportunity to work with a great firm that represents so many dynamic clients," Nelson Ahn commented. "We join a team of terrific lawyers and are excited about the potential to collaborate on expansion of the firm's international corporate practice."

Mr. Ahn, 39, received his J.D. from the Boston College School of Law and his undergraduate degree in economics from Columbia University. He is a native Korean speaker.

Mr. Kim, 37, received an LL.N. in international and comparative law and a J.D., both from the Georgetown University Law Center. He earned a B.A. in general studies from Harvard. Mr. Kim is a native Korean speaker.

Mr. Lee has an MBA in finance from the University of Chicago. He has practiced law in Korea, Hong Kong and the UK and is qualified to practice New York and English law. Mr. Lee previously practiced with Simmons & Simmons in Hong Kong and London. Mr. Lee is a native Korean speaker.

Sidley Austin Brown & Wood is one of the world's largest full-service law firms. With more than 1,300 lawyers practicing on three continents (North America, Europe and Asia), the firm provides a broad range of integrated services to meet the needs of both large and small businesses as well as governments, institutions, associations, foundations, professional firms and individuals. Sidley Austin Brown & Wood now has one of the largest Korean practices outside of Seoul and continues to expand its capabilities in structured finance, mergers and acquisitions and capital markets.