Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy has opened a Foreign Legal Consultant office in Seoul, joining a host of international law firms that have entered the market since the signing of U.S. and EU Free-Trade Agreements with South Korea in 2011.

The new office, which was approved by the Korean Ministry of Justice on Jan. 23, is headed by partner Young Joon Kim, who has relocated to Seoul from the firm’s Hong Kong office.

Kim, who was also the managing partner of the Milbank’s Tokyo office from 1997 to 2003, advises clients largely on outbound transactions and financings from Korea, as well as aviation finance.

Milbank’s Seoul office is staffed by Kim and associate Bong Sang Cho, who are working closely on Korean matters with the firm’s global team of transactional and finance lawyers.

The office focuses primarily on working with both international and Korean companies and government agencies on cross-border M&A, private equity and project finance deals, as well as on aviation finance and dispute resolution.

“Given the extensive working relationships we have inside Korea’s public and private sectors, it will be a great advantage to have a full-time office closer to our clients – and to better coordinate with our offices globally, in Asia, Europe and Latin America, as well as the US,” said Milbank Chairman Scott Edelman, in a statement.

The new office is Milbank’s fifth in Asia, in addition to its offices in Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and Beijing.

Since the signing of U.S. and EU Free-Trade Agreements with Korea in 2011, which allow American and European law firms to open offices in Korea, more than 20 international law firms have set up shop in Seoul, operating as Foreign Legal Consultant offices. However, restrictions remain in force until Korea’s legal market is fully opened in 2016, which limits international firms to largely international dispute resolution and outbound work.