The government ultimately lost the lawsuit for national treasury recovery filed against Grand Hilton Hotel Chairman Lee Woo-young, the grandson of pro-Japanese Lee Hae-seung (pictured). yunhap news
The government ultimately lost a lawsuit filed to return land in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, owned by descendants of pro-Japanese activist Lee Hae-seung, to the national treasury.
According to the legal community on the 6th, the first division of the Supreme Court (Chief Justice Noh Tae-ak) confirmed the lower court ruling that the plaintiff lost in the appellate trial of the ownership transfer registration lawsuit filed by the government against Grand Hilton Hotel Chairman Lee Woo-young, the grandson of Lee Hae-seung.
Lee Hae-seung, the 5th-generation descendant of Cheoljong’s father, Jeongye Daewongun, received the title of marquis bestowed by Japan in 1910 and a commemorative medal for the annexation of Korea in 1912 for his contributions during the invasion of national sovereignty, and enjoyed privileges until the fall of Japan. In 2007, the Committee for the Investigation of Pro-Japanese and Anti-National Acts defined Lee Hae-seung as a pro-Japanese and anti-national activist.
The land subject to the lawsuit is forest land (27,905㎡) in Hongeun-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. Lee Hae-seung acquired this land in 1917 in return for his cooperation with Japan. According to the pro-Japanese property ownership law, property acquired in return for cooperation with Japan from the start of the Russo-Japanese War (1904) until liberation belongs to the state. The Ministry of Justice filed a lawsuit against Chairman Lee in February 2021.
Chairman Lee inherited this land from his grandfather Lee Hae-seung in 1957. The land on which the mortgage was placed was auctioned in 1966 and became the property of Korea First Bank, but was repurchased by Chairman Lee the following year. Chairman Lee’s side claimed, “We signed a separate sales contract with Korea First Bank.”
The court ruled in favor of Chairman Lee. This is because of the proviso clause in Article 3, Paragraph 1 of the Pro-Japanese Property Attribution Act that ‘Pro-Japanese property is owned by the state, but rights acquired by a third party in good faith or by paying a fair price cannot be harmed.’
The first trial court ruled that “the right is valid if the property was acquired without knowledge or knowledge that it was pro-Japanese property and a fair price was paid,” and that “even if the heir of a pro-Japanese, anti-national actor, there is no reason to be excluded from the scope of a third party.”
The government appealed, but the second trial also ruled to the same effect. The second trial focused on the fact that Korea First Bank acquired the land through an auction without knowing that it was pro-Japanese property. If the government reclaims this land, the past ownership transfer registrations of Korea First Bank and Chairman Lee will be sequentially erased. This is said to be detrimental to the rights of Korea First Bank and cannot be legally permitted.
The Supreme Court also dismissed the appeal, finding the original judgment to be justifiable.
2023-10-06 04:45:00
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