Samsung braces for class action suits by Note7 users

[THE INVESTOR] Facing a series of class action lawsuits in South Korea and the US, Samsung Electronics has reportedly chosen two law firms Gwangjang and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan as its legal advisors.

The Bell, a Korean news outlet, reported on Oct. 20 that the tech firm had selected law firms as its legal representatives in a bid to deal with the class action lawsuit filed by some US consumers and anticipated legal action of US mobile carriers, including AT&T.

The law firms, which have been serving as advisors for Samsung in the legal conflicts with Apple, are said to be reviewing the recent controversy surrounding the short-lived Galaxy Note 7.

Compensating US mobile carriers is said to be inevitable for Samsung to maintain future partnerships with the US mobile network operators.

After having stopped receiving new subscribers for the Note 7, AT&T has been running its own refund program, covering the related costs on its own.

Three US consumers have sued the Korean tech firm in Newark, New Jersey, while some groups of Korean consumers are preparing to a similar suit.

Meanwhile, Samsung is expected to roll out new compensation programs on Oct. 21 to encourage the current Galaxy Note 7 users to replace their phone with other Samsung handsets.

The new program will allow users to receive cash discounts for their future purchase of the Galaxy S8 or the next Note model.

Samsung’s mobile sales team chief Kim Jin-hae reportedly said the company would come up with measures to minimize the impact of the discontinued Note for handset retailers.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)