The boy’s name is Kobe Lee. However, the father’s name, Jeffrey Salko, doesn’t sound Korean. My guess is that he is an adoptee and does have Korean citizenship; hence, a Korean court would have no jurisdiction in determining the custody of an American boy with two American parents.

According to information published on the State Dept. website,

South Korea is not a party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, nor are there any international or bilateral treaties in force between South Korea and the United States dealing with international parental child abduction.

Thus,

Custody orders and judgments of foreign courts are not enforceable directly under Korean law. However, under Article 203 of the Criminal Code, an applicant can request recognition of foreign court orders.

http://travel.state.gov/family.....y_520.html

Some decisions get made based on a clear vision, a dream. Others, based on careful analysis. And some get made based on “I just can’t fucking do this anymore”. It’s getting close to Mrs. Linkd’s annual contract renewal time…there’s been a lot to talk about this weekend. Thank god for beer.

http://machinist.salon.com/fea.....index.html

Also interesting that Korean customs made no attempt to stop the fleeing mother and child.

Why would they? There’s really no way they’d know.

What he needs at this point is a partner — not necessarily a full partner, but someone sharing in the ownership of the company, and motivated by its success. The employee who is paid based on profitability works harder.

I recommend he take a look at the works of David Maister, the world’s leading thinker on professional services firms. His book Managing the Professional Service Firm is the best on my bookshelf (it’s also available at What The Book, but an older edition).

I also strongly recommend Maister’s “Strategy and the Fat Smoker”, also available at Amazon and What The Book. Having just finished it, I wish the other lawyers in our firm would read the Fat Smoker.

It’s true that the type of person you’re looking for might be attracted to work elsewhere, especially if/when more than what you provide is being offered. And, assuming your employee would be working directly with your clients, that legitimate concern would naturally increase.

However, I don’t think that you need worry especially about the employee’s productivity as a result of that. Really, this concern is separate from the other - in the first case they’re so good that they draw the attention of other employers, and in the second, they’re so bad that they draw your attention. As you say, you need someone who can ‘walk and talk’ this line of work, so don’t hire on anyone who can’t. And don’t plan on your wife quitting her job until you’re sure that you’ve found the right employee.

I’m not versed in Korean employment law, but if your concern is one of productivity, could you not put that into some sort of a ‘best efforts’ clause of an employment contract, with failure to meet provide work of sufficient quality according to schedule explicitly stated therein as a sufficient reason for discharge?

See: “NY Mom Rescues Son from South Korea”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23836311/

gbnhj is right on my biz model (add translation into the mix). But now my company is nearing 2 yrs old and I can see that ‘natural limit’. Now is my busiest time of year, and I can run 3 or 4 outsourcers (translators) on 2 or 3 projects simultaneously - that’s it. Either I accept that as the limit, or I hire.

But I don’t need a contract employee who doesn’t understand business. I already understand what my clients’ PR and IR teams need to say even better than they do. That lets me price myself pretty high. I’d only hire someone who can ‘walk and talk.’

Someone like that always has the option of a corporate-type job such as Mrs. Linkd’s. An iron rice-bowl. Even if I don’t offer that, I’m still competing for talent against that.

The tradeoffs between job security+lower pay vs. job insecurity+chance for higher pay is common to all labor markets. But in Korea it seems really skewed toward the security. The reward possibilities on the entrepreneurial side don’t seem to attract the best people.