Press & events

Coverage, talks and appointments.

  • in the press since1998
  • 31articles
  • 18outlets

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Featured in Yonhap News · Seoul Shinmun · Segye Ilbo · France Zone · Dong-A Ilbo · CBS Nocut News · The Hankyoreh · Chosun Ilbo

Latest news and events

Recent talks, appointments and events involving the firm and its partners.

Show all 17 events

Signature historical case

The Oegyujanggak case

Since 2007, James Joong-ho KIM has acted in the claim for the return of Korea's Oegyujanggak royal manuscripts before the Paris Administrative Court. At the December 2009 hearing, the French State used the word “pillage” for the first time.

See the coverage below ↓

Disputes involving public bodies: our practice →

Timeline from press coverage and a 2017 government case study

  1. 2007Restitution claim brought before the Paris Administrative Court in February.
  2. 2009At the December hearing, the French State uses the word “pillage” for the first time.
  3. 2010Appeal filed on 24 February after the first-instance ruling. In November, the two heads of state announce the return of the manuscripts.
  4. 2011Transfer of the manuscripts to Korea completed in May.

Sources: press coverage listed on this page; National Human Resources Development Institute (Korea), case study on the Korea–France Oegyujanggak negotiation, September 2017.

Coverage by theme

Cultural heritage 18

Interview after the appeal: how the French State came to use the word 'pillage'“프랑스의 ‘약탈’ 표현은 우리 작전의 성과”Kyunghyang Shinmun · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)After the first-instance ruling: the appeal and the French State's acknowledgement of 'pillage'“외규장각 반환訴 1심 졌지만 ‘약탈’인정 성과…끝까지 투쟁”Dong-A Ilbo · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Appeal in the Oegyujanggak royal manuscripts restitution case against the French State佛행정법원에 외규장각 문서반환 항소한 김중호 변호사Seoul Shinmun · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)
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Appeal filed in the Oegyujanggak restitution case: the first claim for looted cultural property brought by a civil society group문화연대 "영구임대는 무슨? 반드시 돌려받겠다!"Munhwa Journal 21 · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Appeal filed in the Oegyujanggak restitution case: the three legal grounds외규장각 반환소송 항소장 접수CBS Nocut News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Press conference on the appeal in the Oegyujanggak restitution case (photo)김중호 외규장각 반환소송 담당 변호사Newsis · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)At the Paris hearing, the French State uses the word 'pillage' for the first time佛 '약탈' 인정… 반환은 미지수Dong-A Ilbo · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)The French government acknowledges the 'pillage' of the Oegyujanggak books프랑스 정부, 외규장각 도서 '약탈' 인정The Hankyoreh · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Interview on the Oegyujanggak restitution claim against the French State<사람들> 외규장각 유물 반환소송 김중호 변호사Yonhap News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Next stage of the Oegyujanggak restitution litigation, with an interview"훔쳐간 문화재 내놔라" 韓-佛 소송전 2라운드CBS Nocut News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Press conference in front of the French Embassy in Seoul on the restitution case佛 약탈 외규장각 유물 반환 소송 급물살Yonhap News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)The restitution case moves forward after the French government's formal reply프랑스 외규장각 반환 소송 '본격화'Yonhap News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Behind the Le Monde advertisement calling for the return of the Oegyujanggak books르몽드 '외규장각도서 반환촉구' 광고 실리기까지The Hankyoreh · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Full-page advertisement in Le Monde calling for the return of the Oegyujanggak books佛 르몽드에 외규장각도서 반환촉구 광고문 게재Yonhap News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)A restitution claim to be filed at the Paris Administrative Court on 9 February[사회플러스] “외규장각 도서 반환” 佛에 소송Seoul Shinmun · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Announcement of the Oegyujanggak restitution claim against the French State, to be filed on 9 February 2007김중호 변호사, 9일 외규장각 도서 반환 소송France Zone · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Interview before filing the restitution claim at the Paris Administrative Court<인터뷰> 외규장각 반환소송 김중호 변호사Yonhap News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)Headline: a restitution claim to be filed at the Paris Administrative Court<연합뉴스 이시각 헤드라인>-08:00Yonhap News · · In Korean (opens in a new tab)

Publications and institutional work

Selected research and contributions by Habbine Estelle KIM.

All publications on kimavocat.com ↗

In pictures

Salon de l'Étudiant, Paris, Korea pavilion: presentations by the CCICF (Habbine Estelle KIM, Secretary General) and KOSME (Jae Yang, Director).
Salon de l'Étudiant, Paris: KOSME presentation on support for Korean SMEs and startups.
Embassy of Korea in France, consular section: 2025 information session on everyday law and student life, led by James Joong-ho KIM.
Paris Arbitration Week 2025, WISLaw panel: "Beating the Post-Paris 2024 Olympic Blues: Experiences and Insights on CAS Arbitration Procedures", hosted by Gaillard Banifatemi Shelbaya Disputes.
CCI Corée France hybrid seminar "Rencontre avec les entreprises coréennes", with the Embassy of Korea in France.
Show 4 more photos
James Joong-ho KIM presenting the main French business forms (EI, SARL/EURL, SAS/SASU).
2025 Gyeongsangnam-do Investment Promotion Conference: signing of investment and cooperation agreements in aerospace and green industries.
Creative Economy French-Korean Forum, CCI Paris Île-de-France, with KOTRA, the FKCCI and the CCICF: James Joong-ho KIM speaking.
James Joong-ho KIM speaking at a business breakfast.

For journalists

For interviews, contact the partners directly. We answer in English, French or Korean.

Email the press contact

paris@archelegal.com · +33 1 43 35 84 10

Available for comment

James Joong-ho KIM

james.kim@archelegal.com

  • Korean companies entering France: company formation and administrative steps
  • Restitution of cultural property: the Oegyujanggak case
  • Legal practice and the judiciary in France

Habbine Estelle KIM

habbine.kim@archelegal.com

  • Setting up companies and doing business between Korea and France (inbound and outbound)
  • French employment law for Korean groups' subsidiaries
  • Sports law and CAS arbitration (Paris 2024)
  • AI, EU law and digital regulation

Media kit

About Archè

Archè (법무법인 아르케) is an international boutique law firm in Paris. It advises Asian and European businesses on corporate, employment, disputes and international projects, in English, French and Korean.

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