우리 기업의 중동 이슬람지역 진출에 따른 법적 위험 관리방안

Legal Risk Management Relating to Overseas Investment in Islamic Region

Arab Spring wraps the Middle East and North Africa regions. How the future unfolds would have enormous impacts on Korean business stakes and strategy in MENA. Vested interests should be protected while new changes should bring in more business opportunities. Looking back is the starting point to glance at the future. Thus this paper reviews the history of shari’a in Islamic world since 7th century. Western influence since the 18th century on Osman-Turkey made Islamic world question about the relationship between Shari’a and the modern statutory system. This question still lingers in many Islamic countries. Turkey and Saudi Arabia are two extremes on this issue. In Saudi, Shari’a stands above any human-made norms. In Turkey, Shari’a has legal significance to the extent that it has been incorporated into part of the statutory system. More specifically, foreign investment can be protected from appropriation by BITs that Korea entered into with most Middle East countries. Korea Trade Insurance Corporation also provides a variety of insurance products for the political and commercial risks involving foreign investments. Finally, based on party autonomy, contracts should be equipped with protective mechanism from political upheaval and other uncertainties. In the case of disputes, arbitration has been widely implemented based on the Sulha concept in Qur’an. Despite the economic and political importance of MENA, Korea has been negligent on the study of Islamic legal system. As Arab Spring is sweeping the region, Korea should start in-depth studies on Islamic law.