Lee Jae-yong Appears at Retrial After 10 Months... Silent in Response to Reporters' Questions

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is heading to the Seoul Central District Court Complex in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 9th to attend the retrial hearing on charges including bribery related to the state affairs manipulation case.
Photo by Lee Ki-min victor.lee@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong appeared at the retrial hearing on bribery charges related to the state affairs manipulation case on the 9th.

Vice Chairman Lee arrived at around 1:34 PM wearing a gray suit at the Seoul Court Complex in Seocho-gu, Seoul, where the Seoul High Court is located.

Reporters asked questions such as "How do you feel attending court after 10 months?", "Please evaluate the Samsung Compliance Committee," and "What is your position on the new trial regarding the Samsung Biologics accounting fraud case?" but Vice Chairman Lee remained silent and headed to the courtroom.

The Seoul High Court Criminal Division 1 (Presiding Judge Jung Jun-young) will proceed with Vice Chairman Lee's retrial hearing from around 2:05 PM on the same day.

During the trial, it is expected that the selection of expert evaluators to examine the effectiveness and sustainability of the Compliance Committee will be finalized, and the method of evaluation will be discussed. Previously, at the preparatory hearing held on the 26th of last month, the court ordered both parties to submit "expert evaluation opinions on improvement plans for the Samsung Compliance Committee."

The court selected former Constitutional Court Justice Kang Il-won, who presided over the impeachment trial of former President Park Geun-hye, as an expert evaluator. Vice Chairman Lee's side selected former Daegu High Prosecutor Kim Kyung-soo (currently a lawyer), known as a special prosecutor during his prosecution days, and the special prosecution team selected accountant Hong Soon-tak (executive member of the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy Economic and Financial Center).

Meanwhile, in October last year, the court ordered Vice Chairman Lee's side to "establish a system for Samsung's compliance management." In response, Samsung appointed former Supreme Court Justice Kim Ji-hyung (currently a lawyer) as chairman and launched the Compliance Committee in February. Over the 10 months since its launch, the Compliance Committee has issued various recommendations to Vice Chairman Lee and Samsung regarding succession, labor issues, and other matters.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.