Supreme Court "Suncheon Wild Tea Experience Center Demolition Lawsuit, Remanded"

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] The lawsuit between Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism and Suncheon City over the demolition of the Wild Tea Experience Center built by the city is once again set to be reviewed by a lower court.

On the 24th, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Kim Sang-hwan) overturned the previous ruling that favored the plaintiff, Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order, in the appeal case against Suncheon City regarding the building demolition lawsuit, and remanded the case back to the Gwangju District Court with the plaintiff losing.

In March 2004, Suncheon City, having obtained land use consent from Seonamsa Temple of the Taego Order, which was occupying the Seonamsa site at the time, proceeded with the construction of the experience center. However, the registered owner of the Seonamsa site was Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order, not the Taego Order Seonamsa that had granted land use permission. At the time of the experience center's construction, Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order was in dispute with Seonamsa Temple of the Taego Order occupying the site, and under the Buddhist Property Management Act, the temple was managed by the mayor of Suncheon City.

Both parties agreed in February 2011 to jointly respond to matters related to property rights protection, after which they were able to jointly take over property management rights from the mayor of Suncheon City.

After acquiring the property management rights, Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order filed a lawsuit in June of the same year demanding the demolition of the experience center, claiming that Suncheon City had constructed the building on the Seonamsa site without consent.

The first trial sided with Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order, the registered owner, presuming it to be the substantive owner of the land. Suncheon City appealed, but the second trial dismissed the appeal.

The Supreme Court's judgment differed. The court pointed out that there was insufficient examination regarding whether Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order had the 'capacity to be a party' to file the demolition lawsuit. Although the registered owner is Seonamsa Temple of the Jogye Order, the Taego Order Seonamsa had occupied the site for a long time, and the majority of the believers belong to the Taego Order, suggesting that the current Seonamsa may effectively belong to the Taego Order.

The Supreme Court explained, "The case was overturned and remanded on the grounds that the owner of Seonamsa, which has been in dispute between the Jogye and Taego Orders for a long time, should be determined based on the actual situation."

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