Abstract Family-owned listed company : the example of Korean chaebol

Family-owned companies contribute the largest share to our economy. Yet, there is still no legal definition of what a family-owned company is and the topic has not drawn a lot of interest from legal academics. This study aims at differentiating family-owned companies by focusing more specifically on companies listed on a financial market. Family-owned listed company combines two worlds, family and financial market, which are based on diametrically opposed values and modus operandi. This conflict helps us to understand the specific features of these companies, as well as the risks attached to them. Taking the example of the chaebol, the Korean family-owned conglomerates, we highlighted the impact of the family control on the management and  the governance of these groups. We compared French and Korean companies and legal frameworks,  drawing the conclusion that the French legal system might have been a better fit to the Korean environment than American rules. Our research also underlines the relative failure of the transplant of U.S. standards in South Korea, which can be explained by the theory of path dependence.