Court rules: "Choi Tae-won must pay 944 billion won to Noh So-young in property division"... largest ever

*This content was translated by AI.

A retrial court ruled that SK Group Chairman Choi Tae-won must pay 944 billion won to Art Center Nabi Director Noh So-young as property division. The amount is based on cash, marking the largest property division in history.

The Seoul High Court's Family Division No. 1 (Presiding Judge Lee Sang-ju) ruled during the retrial sentencing held on the afternoon of the 24th that "the counterclaim defendant (Choi Tae-won side) must pay the counterclaim plaintiff (Noh So-young side) 944 billion won in property division, plus interest calculated at an annual rate of 5% from the day after the judgment becomes final until the day it is fully paid."

The court determined that SK shares held by Choi (Chairman) are subject to division. The property division ratio was set at one-third for Director Noh and two-thirds for Choi (Chairman). Any shortfall in Director Noh's share of the stocks will be covered by Choi (Chairman) in cash.

The court set April 16, 2024—the date the final argument concluded in the trial on facts during the divorce lawsuit appeal—as the standard for valuing the shares subject to division.

The court noted that "although SK share prices rose significantly between the conclusion of arguments in the appeal and the conclusion of arguments in the retrial, it cannot be said that this was not influenced by Choi (Chairman)'s managerial contributions." However, the court explained that "the significant rise in share prices was considered in calculating the property division ratio to ensure fair distribution of marital joint property."

Additionally, shares gifted by Choi (Chairman) to relatives as part of maintaining management rights and conducting business activities before the breakdown of the marital relationship were excluded from the property subject to division.

In this retrial, only property division was under review. This is because the Supreme Court previously confirmed 2 billion won in damages and remanded the case for a new trial on the property division portion only.

The court did not explain the specific reasons for its judgment in the courtroom on that day.

However, considering the scale of the property division, it is interpreted that the court recognized SK shares held by Choi (Chairman) as property subject to division.

Both parties may file a further appeal with the Supreme Court if they disagree with this retrial judgment.

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*This content was translated by AI.