Daegu District Court Dismisses Appeal on Legally Seizing Forced Labor Company Assets... Nippon Steel Says "Compensation Ended with Korea-Japan Agreement"

Daegu District Court.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Nippon Steel, the debtor in the forced labor compensation lawsuit related to Japan's colonial rule, filed immediate appeals against the court's asset seizure orders, claiming that "compensation for forced labor was already resolved by the Korea-Japan Agreement," but all appeals were dismissed.

On the 11th, the 2nd Civil Division of Daegu District Court (Chief Judge Lee Young-sook) announced that it had dismissed three immediate appeals filed by Nippon Steel against the asset seizure orders.

Earlier, the Pohang Branch of Daegu District Court ruled that Nippon Steel's assets could be seized to compensate victims of forced labor during Japan's colonial rule.

The appellate court cited the Supreme Court's ruling that the right to claim damages for forced labor in 2018 is not included in the scope of the Korea-Japan Claims Agreement signed between governments in 1965.

The court stated, "The debtor's argument assumes that the creditors' claims for damages against the debtor fall under the Claims Agreement, but the Supreme Court has already ruled that claims for damages are not included in the scope of the Claims Agreement, so the debtor's contrary argument is not accepted."

It also stated, "When the enforcement court issues a stock seizure order, it should decide after reviewing procedural and formal requirements such as the existence of enforcement authority, its delivery, and the presence of enforcement initiation conditions," and added, "There is no evidence to consider that there is any fault in the seizure order in this case."

Previously, in October 2018, the Supreme Court ruled in a damages lawsuit filed by four forced labor victims against Shin Nihon Steel (now Nippon Steel), ordering the company to pay 100 million won per victim.

After Nippon Steel refused to compensate, the victims applied to the Pohang Branch for a stock seizure order on Nippon Steel's Korean asset, PNR Co., Ltd., which the court accepted.

The Pohang Branch issued a seizure order on the stocks owned by Nippon Steel and proceeded with delivery, but as the Japanese government evaded this, it ultimately led to public notice delivery.

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