Maria Hajiyerou is a senior foreign attorney at Kim & Chang with nearly 15 years of experience advising multinational and domestic clients on complex regulatory and compliance matters in Korea. Her practice focuses on antitrust and competition law, privacy and data security, and regulatory issues, particularly in the food & beverage and sports & luxury sectors.
As a member of the Antitrust & Competition Practice, Ms. Hajiyerou has extensive experience handling cross-border merger reviews before the Korea Fair Trade Commission (“KFTC”), including high profile transactions in the software, food, chemical and healthcare industries. She also advises clients in KFTC investigations involving cartels, unfair trade practices and franchise-related matters. Notably, she assisted a team that successfully overturned a 2017 KFTC decision against a US-based advanced materials company, marking the first Korean Supreme Court ruling finding that non-pricing vertical restraints are legal under Korean competition law.
In the area of privacy and data security, Ms. Hajiyerou regularly advises clients on managing data breach incidents and ensuring compliance with personal information protection laws. Her experience extends to handling cross-border data leakage cases and related regulatory investigations.
Ms. Hajiyerou has developed significant industry expertise in the food & beverage and consumer products sectors, assisting global brands with market entry and exit strategies, distribution structures, regulatory compliance and ongoing business operations in Korea.
Ms. Hajiyerou is a member of the New York Bar.
