Supreme Court: Construction Company Liable for 'Light Reflection' Damage from Haeundae Marine City High-Rise Apartments

Marine City, Haeundae-gu, Busan Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The Supreme Court has ruled that HDC, the construction company of a super high-rise apartment in Marine City, Haeundae-gu, Busan, must pay compensation to nearby residents suffering from sunlight reflected off the building's exterior walls.

On the 22nd, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Park Sang-ok) announced that it upheld the appellate court's partial ruling in favor of the plaintiffs in the damages lawsuit filed by residents of Apartment A in Haeundae against HDC. The court determined that the residents of Apartment A were experiencing an infringement beyond what is generally tolerable due to the intense sunlight.

In 2009, residents of Apartment A filed a lawsuit claiming that the sunlight reflected from the exterior walls of a nearby super high-rise apartment constructed by HDC made it so uncomfortable that they could not open their eyes, and that their views and sunlight rights were also infringed upon.

In response, the first trial court ruled against the plaintiffs, stating, "There is no evidence to recognize that the residents of Apartment A are disturbed in their daily lives beyond what is generally tolerable."

However, the second trial court accepted some of the claims regarding damage caused by sunlight reflection. It ordered HDC to pay a total of 210 million won to 34 apartment residents, with each receiving between 1.32 million and 6.87 million won.

At that time, the court pointed out, "Light is essential for a pleasant and healthy human life, but if the glare is excessive, the peace of residence enjoyed by the occupants is infringed upon," adding, "This can affect the physical and mental health of the residents."

The Supreme Court also agreed with this judgment and dismissed the appeal. The court stated, "The appellate court did not err in law regarding the establishment of tort due to solar reflected light and the calculation of consolation money."

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