Korea: U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert called on Korea to fully open its legal services market, fully implement the free trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S. and accelerate deregulation.

US envoy pushes Seoul to fully open legal market

Washingtong likely to increase pressure on Korea over trade

By Yoon Ja-young

His remarks are adding to the prediction that the United States will strengthen pressure on Korea regarding trade issues following the presidential election.U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert called on Korea to fully open its legal services market, fully implement the free trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S. and accelerate deregulation.

In a lecture titled “Allies in Business: The Future of U.S.-Korea Economic Relationship,” organized by the Institute for Global Economics in Seoul, Wednesday, Lippert said the Korea-U.S. FTA should be fully implemented to further strengthen economic ties between the two countries.

He cited the opening of the legal services market as an example, adding that the country will see more jobs for lawyers and choices for consumers.

Korea is scheduled to open the legal services market in 2017 according to the FTA, but a related revision bill only allowed joint ventures with Korean law firms. Also, the stake of a foreign law firm in the joint venture shouldn’t exceed 49 percent. It also restricts the services that the joint venture can provide.

The U.S. envoy visited lawmakers at the National Assembly in January, protesting that the revision failed to comply with the spirit of the bilateral pact. Despite the protest, the revision bill was approved at the National Assembly in February.

Lippert said that the bilateral economic relationship between the U.S. and South Korea is stronger than ever.

“In an unprecedented way, our policy and economic goals have come into very close alignment. In short, our government and our economic leaders both want the same things,” he said.

The ambassador also stressed that Korea needs more deregulation, pointing out that regulations hinder foreign investment as well as increasing the cost for Korean businesses.

“We want job creation. We want investment and sustainable and equitable growth. We want openness, innovation and greater regulatory alignment and coherence. These will help to drive our shared prosperity to new heights,” he said.

Analysts expect Korea to face stronger pressure from the United States over trade, especially after the presidential election.

U.S. Presidential candidate Donald Trump said the Korea-U.S. FTA should be renegotiated along with other free trade pacts as they are destroying jobs in the United States.

According to Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, strengthening protectionism is not limited to conservatives in Washington. It noted in a report that the United States will likely levy tougher restriction on China, Japan and Korea as well as other major trading partners such as Mexico. It added that the trade environment in the United States may change regardless of the election result as the democratic candidates are also tilted toward protectionism.

The report thus stressed that Korea should have more balanced view on its trade with the United States instead of being overly optimistic about the effect of the Korea-U.S. FTA.

For instance, while Korea is enjoying a surplus in the trade of goods, it is sustaining a deficit in services trade.

“It is necessary to be aware of changes of the atmosphere in the U.S. government as well as the house of representatives and make preparation for changes,” the report notes.