Former LX President Choi Chang-hak Dismissed Over 'Gapjil Controversy' Wins Lawsuit Challenging Dismissal

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] Former CEO of Korea Land and Geospatial Informatix Corporation (LX), Choi Chang-hak, who was dismissed last year amid allegations of power abuse, won a lawsuit challenging his dismissal.

According to the legal community on the 2nd, the Seoul Administrative Court Administrative Division 1 (Chief Judge An Jong-hwa) recently ruled in favor of Choi in the lawsuit he filed against President Moon Jae-in, who has the authority to appoint and dismiss him, seeking cancellation of the dismissal order.

Appointed as LX CEO in 2018, Choi was investigated by the Blue House Anti-Corruption Secretary's Office Public Service Inspection Team the following year over allegations such as using a personal secretary and driver for private errands. In particular, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s Audit Office found that Choi’s practice of having a driver wait at the official residence from early dawn for gym workouts violated public officials’ duty of integrity and maintenance of dignity. Additionally, the inappropriate business agreement made during the selection process of the drone education center candidate site was also considered problematic. After the dismissal proposal was accepted and he was dismissed in April last year, Choi filed a lawsuit challenging the decision.

On this day, the court stated, "Although the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s audit was conducted extensively not only on the reasons for this dismissal but also on the overall allegations against the plaintiff, no face-to-face investigation was conducted, so it cannot be said that the plaintiff was given an opportunity to submit his opinion."

However, the ruling was based solely on procedural defects and did not address the substantive issues such as the legitimacy of the dismissal grounds.

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