COURT REJECTS FORCED LABOR CLAIMS

입력 2021.06.08 (15:30) 수정 2021.06.08 (16:46)

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[Anchor Lead]

South Korea's Supreme Court 3 years ago ordered Japanese firms to compensate victims of wartime forced labor. But on Monday, the Seoul Central District Court issued a completely different ruling in a separate case. The plaintiffs lost in what was the largest ever wartime labor damages suit targeting Japanese firms.

[Pkg]

85 South Korean victims of wartime forced labor and their families filed a lawsuit 6 years ago against 16 Japanese companies, seeking compensation. The plaintiffs sought 100 million won each, becoming the largest damages lawsuit to date related to wartime forced labor. The first and last court hearing took place last month after 6 long years of little action due to the lack of response from Japanese firms. In the Monday ruling, the Seoul court dismissed the case saying the plaintiffs had limited litigation rights. The court cited the 1965 agreement between Seoul and Tokyo on resolving colonial-era issues. It said that individual compensation claims were covered by that treaty. The ruling suggests that individual rights can't be exercised through lawsuits in South Korea while the right to seek such compensation against Japanese firms remains. This completely contradicts verdicts reached by the Supreme Court 3 years ago. In similar lawsuits in 2018, the top court ruled that the 1965 treaty does not apply to individual rights of claim. And the court at the time ordered Japanese firms to compensate labor victims.

[Soundbite] Kang Gil(Defense counsel for victims) : "Today's ruling runs directly counter to a previous Supreme Court ruling. We will appeal the decision."

16 civic groups have strongly criticized the latest ruling calling it "non-sensical." They said that courts may not abide by Supreme Court precedents on a case by case basis, but to reach a completely opposing decision when there's been little change to the circumstances is quite difficult to comprehend.

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  • COURT REJECTS FORCED LABOR CLAIMS
    • 입력 2021-06-08 15:30:36
    • 수정2021-06-08 16:46:34
    News Today
[Anchor Lead]

South Korea's Supreme Court 3 years ago ordered Japanese firms to compensate victims of wartime forced labor. But on Monday, the Seoul Central District Court issued a completely different ruling in a separate case. The plaintiffs lost in what was the largest ever wartime labor damages suit targeting Japanese firms.

[Pkg]

85 South Korean victims of wartime forced labor and their families filed a lawsuit 6 years ago against 16 Japanese companies, seeking compensation. The plaintiffs sought 100 million won each, becoming the largest damages lawsuit to date related to wartime forced labor. The first and last court hearing took place last month after 6 long years of little action due to the lack of response from Japanese firms. In the Monday ruling, the Seoul court dismissed the case saying the plaintiffs had limited litigation rights. The court cited the 1965 agreement between Seoul and Tokyo on resolving colonial-era issues. It said that individual compensation claims were covered by that treaty. The ruling suggests that individual rights can't be exercised through lawsuits in South Korea while the right to seek such compensation against Japanese firms remains. This completely contradicts verdicts reached by the Supreme Court 3 years ago. In similar lawsuits in 2018, the top court ruled that the 1965 treaty does not apply to individual rights of claim. And the court at the time ordered Japanese firms to compensate labor victims.

[Soundbite] Kang Gil(Defense counsel for victims) : "Today's ruling runs directly counter to a previous Supreme Court ruling. We will appeal the decision."

16 civic groups have strongly criticized the latest ruling calling it "non-sensical." They said that courts may not abide by Supreme Court precedents on a case by case basis, but to reach a completely opposing decision when there's been little change to the circumstances is quite difficult to comprehend.

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