Lee & Ko said on the 5th that it has hired former Ministery of Food and Drug Safety Vice Minister Yang Jin-young as a senior adviser.
Yang passed the state administration exam in 1992 and entered public service. Yang later served as Ministery of Food and Drug Safety Director for Planning and Finance, director of the Consumer Safety Prevention Bureau, and director of the Food Safety Policy Bureau, handling regulatory policy for food, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices.
In 2020, while serving as Ministery of Food and Drug Safety Vice Minister, Yang took charge of stabilizing the supply of masks and other quarantine supplies amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Yang also took part in operating the emergency use authorization system for medical devices and pharmaceuticals.
After leaving public office, from 2021 to 2024 Yang served as chair of K-MEDI Hub. At the foundation, Yang oversaw efforts to build infrastructure supporting the development of new drugs and medical devices.
Lee & Ko plans to use Yang's hiring to strengthen its capabilities in regulatory response and overseas expansion advisory for the healthcare and biotech sectors. The firm said it will provide corporations in the medical device, pharmaceutical, biotech, and food sectors with advice on overseas expansion strategies, partnership building, and trade risk reviews.
Kim Sang-gon, managing partner at Lee & Ko, said, "Yang's understanding of policy and industry network will aid domestic corporations pushing for global expansion and foreign corporations seeking to enter the Korean market."
Yang said, "Striking a balance between regulation and industry development is key to the growth of the healthcare ecosystem," adding, "I will help corporations reliably launch innovative products and services in overseas markets."