Executive narrativeSouth Korea’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) regime is a practical multi-regime system. In practice, execution risk usually comes from six channels operating at the same time:•listed-company governance disclosure through the Korea Exchange (KRX) and Financial Services Commission (FSC) regimes•developing sustainability-reporting standards through the Korea Sustainability Standards Board (KSSB) standards•environmental and product rules administered mainly by the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment (MCEE, formerly Ministry of Environment)•labour and occupational safety and health regulations (including regulations on serious accidents) administered mainly by the Ministry of Employment and Labour•Commercial Code, including directors’ duty to protect shareholders’ interests, administered by the Ministry of Justice, and•consumer-facing claim control by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC)That means legal teams need tracks for capital markets, risk and