Reflecting on UNCITRAL in Korea and the Asia-Pacific: A conference with the Supreme Court of Korea, the Ministry of Justice and KCAB International

Date: 16 September 2026

Venue: Grand Hyatt Seoul, Republic of Korea

Format: in-person only

The celebration to be co-hosted by the Supreme Court of Korea, the Korean Ministry of Justice (KMOJ) and Korean Commercial Arbitration Board International (KCAB International) provides a timely opportunity to build on the meaningful engagement with diverse domestic and international stakeholders – government officials, judges, practitioners, academics and others – to further enhance awareness and understanding of UNCITRAL. Participants will gain insights into UNCITRAL’s impact supported by the Republic of Korea’s contributions across three dimensions: at the national level, at the regional level and with the judiciary. Substantive topics to be highlighted are those of particular interest for the Asia-Pacific region, including UNCITRAL instruments and developments on dispute resolution, secured transactions and access to credit, insolvency, digitalization of trade, and the Case Law on UNCITRAL Texts (CLOUT) system.

e-flyer

Programme

PROGRAMME

Welcome / Opening Remarks

• Justice Gyeongpil Noh, Minister of the National Court Administration

• Mr. Junha Kang, Deputy Minister of the International Legal Affairs Department, Ministry of Justice of Korea

• Ms. Anna Joubin-Bret, the Secretary of UNCITRAL

• Mr. Seung Wha Chang, Chair, KCAB International

Panel Discussion 1: UNCITRAL and Korea

Moderator

• Mr. Hi-Taek Shin, Emeritus Professor, Seoul National University School of Law

Panellists

• The Importance of UNCITRAL in the Era of AI and Digital - Former Ambassador Choonghee Hahn, Chair of the 47th Session of UNCITRAL

• Korea’s contributions to UNCITRAL innovations in arbitration and mediation – Mr. Kevin Kap-You Kim, Senior Partner, Peter & Kim

• Korea’s contributions to CLOUT and uniform interpretation of UNCITRAL texts, including the CISG – Ms. Haemin Lee, Assistant Professor, Seoul National University School of Law, CLOUT National Correspondent for the Republic of Korea

• The future of UNCITRAL and next generation of legal scholars – Mr. Jaemin Lee, Professor, Seoul National University School of Law

Panel Discussion 2: UNCITRAL and the Judiciary

Moderator

• Mr. Jae Sung Lee, Principal Legal Officer, UNCITRAL

Panellists

• CLOUT cases on Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency (1997) and the achievements of the UNCCA – The Honourable Justice JK Ward, President – Court of Appeal, Supreme Court of New South Wales, Australia
• UNCITRAL tools for the judiciary: How the UNCCI helps further engage the judiciary and other stakeholders with UNCITRAL – Justice Vikram Nath, Supreme Court of India
• UNCITRAL tools for the judiciary: Practice Guide on Cross-Border Insolvency Cooperation (2009) and Model Law on Recognition and Enforcement of Insolvency-Related Judgments with Guide to Enactment (2018) – Judge Young Seok Kim, Changwon District Court (Tongyeong Branch)

• How the Singapore Convention on Mediation Enhances Access to Justice – Judge Tenzin Tenzin, Secretary General, Bhutan ADR Centre

• Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships – Mr. Vikum De Abrew, past Rapporteur of UNCITRAL Working Group VI, Sri Lanka

Celebrating Six Decades: A Fireside Chat with the Secretary of UNCITRAL and Chair of KCAB International

Moderator

• Ms. Pui-Ki Emmanuelle Ta, Secretary-General, KCAB International

Speakers

• Ms. Anna Joubin-Bret, the Secretary of UNCITRAL

• Mr. Seung Wha Chang, Chair, KCAB International

Panel Discussion 3: UNCITRAL and the Asia–Pacific

Moderator

• Ms. Athita Komindr, Head, UNCITRAL RCAP

Panellists:

• Initiatives in the region to support UNCITRAL’s global mandate of advancing legal harmonization in international trade – Ms. Seung Eun Choi, Deputy Director, International Legal Policy Division, Ministry of Justice of Korea

• The ongoing consideration of the Singapore Convention on Mediation, the Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration, and other UNCITRAL instruments in Lao PDR – Mr. Bounmek Bannavong, Director General, the Economic Dispute Resolution Center, Ministry of Justice of Lao PDR

• Leading the way in trade financing and international transport of goods: the NCD Convention – Ms. Nak Hee Hyun, Associate Professor, Sungkyunkwan University

• Dispute resolution in the digital economy – Mr. Yuki Yamada, Attorney, International Affairs Division, Ministry of Justice of Japan

• WGIII Intersessional and collaborations with UNCITRAL – Ms. Quyen Nguyen, Director, Legislation and International Economic Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam

• UNCITRAL collaborations with APEC Part 1 & Part 2– Dr. James Ding, JP, Chair, APEC Economic Committee; The Law Officer (International Law), Department of Justice, Hong Kong, China

• Partnering for the future: legally enabling end-to-end trade digitalization – Ms. Christina Pak, Assistant General Counsel, Law & Policy Reform, Asian Development Bank

Closing Remarks

• Judge Woo-Jong Ki, Vice Minister of the National Court Administration