On March 17, 2026, amendments to nine laws^[1] relating to the establishment of the Maritime and International Commercial Court (the “MICC”), a specialized court with jurisdiction over maritime and international commercial cases, were promulgated. These amendments follow the National Assembly’s passage of the nine bills on February 12, 2026, which were subsequently transferred to the government on March 6, 2026 for promulgation. The effective date of these amended laws is March 1, 2028, which aligns with the scheduled opening of the MICC. It is understood that, in preparation for the opening of the MICC, the Supreme Court is currently formulating a draft operational plan including matters such as the initial size of the court.

Maritime disputes and international commercial disputes are, by their nature, characterized by the need for a high level of expertise and expeditious dispute resolution. While specialized maritime divisions have been established and operated at the Seoul Central District Court and Seoul High Court for the specialized handling of maritime-related disputes, the existing system—in which judges assigned to the maritime division also handle other types of cases—has faced limitations in adequately addressing international maritime and commercial disputes.

As international trade and commerce have expanded, there has been a growing demand for specialized handling of maritime and international commercial disputes. However, there had been no dedicated court to address such disputes in Korea. As a result, a considerable portion of maritime and international commercial disputes arising in Korea have been resolved through arbitration institutions or courts located overseas (e.g., in Singapore and London). This has repeatedly raised concerns over the significant litigation and arbitration costs flowing abroad in the dispute resolution process.

Accordingly, a series of amendments to the relevant laws were made to establish the MICC, which will specialize in adjudicating maritime civil cases, maritime administrative cases and international commercial cases, thereby strengthening expertise and expediting dispute resolution in maritime and international commercial matters and enhancing the competitiveness of Korea’s legal industry.

The MICC is scheduled to open in Busan and Incheon in March 2028. The key changes under the amended Court Organization Act and other related laws are as follows:
 

• The MICC will be established as an independent court (Chapter 7 of the Court Organization Act) and will function as an independent specialized court separate from district courts or branch courts.
   

• The MICC will have jurisdiction over four broad categories of cases: (i) maritime civil cases, (ii) maritime administrative cases, (iii) international commercial cases, and (iv) other cases falling under the MICC’s jurisdiction under other laws. The details are as follows (Article 40-10 of the Court Organization Act):
   

• Where the parties agree, proceedings may exceptionally be conducted in a foreign language (Article 62-2 of the Court Organization Act). This is intended to enhance the convenience and accessibility of Korean courts for foreign parties.
   

• The MICC will have both single-judge divisions and collegial panels. The territorial jurisdictions of the Incheon and Busan MICCs are as follows (Schedule 11 of the Act on the Establishment and Jurisdiction of Courts):
   

• The MICC will generally serve as a court of first instance for cases within its jurisdiction and, in some cases, as a court of second instance (where the first instance was heard by a single judge of the Incheon/Busan MICC).
   

• The MICC will have exclusive jurisdiction over maritime civil cases and international commercial cases (Article 24-2(1) of the Civil Procedure Act), as well as judicial review suits falling under maritime administrative cases (Article 9(4) of the Administrative Litigation Act).
   

• Applications for preservation of evidence in maritime civil cases and international commercial cases will, in principle, be handled by the MICC (Articles 376(3) and (4) of the Civil Procedure Act).
   

• The MICC will have exclusive jurisdiction over actions seeking enforcement judgments in maritime civil cases and international commercial cases (Article 26(3) of the Civil Execution Act).
   

• For provisional attachments or injunctions relating to vessels, except for vessels that cannot be registered, the MICC with jurisdiction over the location of the vessel at the time of the provisional attachment/injunction will have jurisdiction (Articles 278 and 303 of the Civil Execution Act).
   

• Under the amended Arbitration Act, court proceedings relating to international arbitration cases falling under maritime civil cases and international commercial cases—such as actions to set aside arbitral awards and recognition/enforcement proceedings—will in principle fall under the jurisdiction of the MICC. However, where the parties have designated a court of jurisdiction in their arbitration agreement, that designation will govern (second sentence of Article 7(5) of the Arbitration Act). Accordingly, if the parties wish to confer jurisdiction over arbitration-related court proceedings on a court other than the MICC, such as a court in Seoul, a separate agreement between the parties to that effect will be required.
   

With the establishment of the MICC, maritime and international commercial disputes will be handled by an independent specialized court, moving away from the existing dedicated division system. The MICC is expected to enable more specialized and expeditious dispute resolution in the maritime and international commercial fields. In particular, the accumulation of related cases through the MICC is expected to contribute to building expertise and establishing consistent legal principles.

In addition, the establishment of independent courts dedicated to maritime disputes in Busan and Incheon, which are major port cities, is expected to enable parties to maritime disputes to pursue specialized and expeditious dispute resolution domestically rather than abroad.

Additionally, as court proceedings relating to international commercial arbitration (such as setting aside, recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards) will be exclusively concentrated in the two MICCs nationwide, the expertise, speed and efficiency of related court proceedings are expected to be further enhanced. On the other hand, parties entering into or reviewing contracts containing international arbitration clauses should consider whether they need to explicitly specify in their arbitration agreement that a particular court, such as a court in Seoul, shall have jurisdiction over court proceedings relating to arbitral awards.

However, the detailed scope of maritime civil cases, maritime administrative cases, international commercial cases and other matters falling under the MICC’s jurisdiction, as well as the specific operational guidelines of the court, will be clarified through subsequent legislation, including the Supreme Court Rules. Accordingly, it will be necessary to closely follow subsequent legislative developments, including the enactment of the Supreme Court Rules, and to proactively review existing contractual dispute resolution provisions and overall contract practices in the maritime and international commercial sectors ahead of the MICC’s opening in March 2028.

^[1]   Nine laws: The “Court Organization Act,” “Act on the Establishment and Jurisdiction of Courts,” “Civil Procedure Act,” “Civil Execution Act,” “Act on the Limitation of Liability of Shipowners,” “Administrative Litigation Act,” “Arbitration Act,” “Small Claims Act” and “Act on the Regulation of Violations of Public Order.”

[Korean Version]