Somin
Lee
I study international trade rules and standards, focusing on whether public records let countries identify requirements, ask questions and check the information they need.
Research interestsinternational trade rules, technical barriers to trade, cross-border second-hand goods, institutional capacity, development policy and consumer protection
International rules and
the evidence they require
I am a researcher based in Seoul, South Korea, working on international trade rules, standards and consumer protection. I study how countries and market participants obtain and use the information needed to apply rules across borders.
My research combines comparative document analysis with consumer-safety R&D and international standardisation through ISO/PC 245, ISO/COPOLCO and more. My work includes cross-border second-hand goods, technical barriers to trade and AI-related disclosure.
Academic foundations
Master of Global Economy & Strategy · Ranked first in cohort · Valedictorian
B.A. International Studies · Ranked second in cohort
Law, technology and international regulation
Professional trajectory
Researched AI standardisation and technical barriers to trade, and contributed comparative research and academic translation to university projects.
ISO committee work
ISO/PC 245: Cross-border trade of second-hand goods
Contribute comments on working drafts, data-exchange work and the committee’s international demand survey, and have served on its resolution drafting committee.
ISO/COPOLCO: Committee on consumer policy
Review consumer-related standards proposals and prepare member-body comments on consumer-safety requirements.
DKE Young Professionals Camp, Offenbach, Germany
Collaborated on a team project on international standards for AI healthcare robotics.
ISO 20245 revision and ISO/PC 245 reactivation
Prepared comparative analyses, gap analyses and position papers supporting revision work and the committee’s reactivation.
Publications & research outputs
Peer-reviewed journal articles
Consumer Risk Coverage in ISO/IEC JTC 1 AI Standards: A Systematic Analysis Based on the COPOLCO AI White Paper
Maps twelve consumer-risk categories from the COPOLCO AI White Paper against the titles and abstracts of 416 ISO/IEC JTC 1 AI-related standards, published or under development, using keyword screening and structured coding. The results identify limited consumer and rights framing and gaps in the coverage of structural and systemic risks.
Industry Status Analysis for Smart Diaper Standardization
Submitted manuscripts
What AI Disclosure Establishes for Verification in WTO TBT Governance
Examines what AI disclosure measures in WTO TBT notification records establish for verification.
Interpreting repair feedback for purchase criteria in cross-border reuse
Examines how repair feedback can inform purchase criteria in cross-border reuse.
Other research manuscripts
Allocating the work of AI disclosure: Article 50 of the EU AI Act and Article 31 of Korea’s AI Framework Act compared
Compares the allocation of disclosure, evidence and verification responsibilities in EU and Korean AI law.
Can product-removal counts be trusted? Data quality, transparency and risk governance in the EU Safety Gate
Examines the quality and traceability of EU Safety Gate records as evidence for product-safety governance.
Standards drafts
Consumer Risk Disclosure and Performance Information for AI-Based Classification Services
Award-winning research
Analysis and Implications of International Standardisation in the AI Industry for Appropriate TBT Measures
Talks & presentations
Fields, methods & languages
Governance & Policy
- Delegated and transnational rule-making
- AI and digital regulation
- International standards development
- Consumer protection and regulatory legitimacy
- Cross-border trade and regulatory diffusion
Research & Methods
- Comparative document and institutional analysis
- Systematic content analysis and coding
- Stata (working knowledge)
- Web-based research tools and GitHub
- Bilingual academic writing
Languages
- Korean (native)
- English (TOEFL iBT: 119)
- French (DELF B2)
- Spanish (DELE A1)