Mr. Hoyong Sohn passed the Korean Patent Attorney Examination in 1999 and has been broadly engaged in patent and utility model prosecution, intellectual property trials and litigation, freedom-to-operate (FTO) and infringement analyses, as well as patent search and analysis work. He is serves as a patent attorney and partner at LEE & MOCK IP.

In particular, while being seconded to the IP Group of Yulchon LLC for about ten years, Mr. Sohn demonstrated extensive expertise in a wide range of matters, including patent infringement disputes, technology misappropriation/theft cases before the Korea Fair Trade Commission, trade secret infringement and employee non-compete matters, enforcement in Korea of international arbitration awards, and M&A due diligence matters.

In addition, as an arbitrator of the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board and a mediator of the IPAC Mediation and Arbitration Center, Mr. Sohn has successfully mediated numerous cases referred by the Korean Patent Court, achieving settlements between the parties. He has also conducted numerous valuation projects as an evaluator for the Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC).

Mr. Sohn possesses extensive practical experience across various technical fields, including automobiles, shipbuilding, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and industrial machinery, covering patent prosecution, trials and litigation, infringement analysis, domestic and foreign Office Action (OA) responses, patent mapping, and IP strategy advisory services.

EDUCATION

  • Korea National Open University (LL.B., 2003)
  • Yonsei University (Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering, 2000)

WORK EXPERIENCE

  • LEE & MOCK IP (2004-Present)
  • Arbitrator, Korean Commercial Arbitration Board (KCAB) (2022-Present)
  • Yulchon LLC (Dispatch Service, 2008-2017)
  • Mock Patent Office (2001-2003)
  • Cha Patent Office (2000-2001)

ADMISSION

  • Certified Technology Transfer Agent, Republic of Korea (2009)
  • Patent Attorney, Republic of Korea (2000)

LANGUAGES

  • Korean, English, Japanese

KEY ACTIVITIES

MEMBERSHIP
  • KPAA (Korean Patent Attorneys Association)
  • APAA (Asian Patent Attorneys Association)
  • LES (Licensing Executives Society International)
REPRESENTATIVE MATTERS
  • Numerous advisory matters relating to patent validity and infringement
  • Advisory matters relating to technology misappropriation and theft cases
REPRESENTATIVE LITIGATION CASES
  • Numerous patent invalidation trials and litigations
  • Numerous patent infringement litigations
  • Numerous trade secret litigations
  • Enforcement actions in Korea relating to international arbitration cases