Late Yoo Byung-eun's eldest daughter wins 15.3 billion won gift tax lawsuit, second daughter loses... What is the reason?

Differences in the Legality of Public Notice Delivery

Yoo Seom-na, the eldest daughter of Yoo Byung-eun, former chairman of Semo Group who lived abroad for three years following the Sewol ferry sinking incident, is entering Incheon District Prosecutors' Office in Nam-gu, Incheon as a suspect on the afternoon of June 7, 2017. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Yoo Seom-na (55), the eldest daughter of the late Yoo Byung-eon (deceased in 2014), former chairman of Semo Group, won a lawsuit confirming the invalidity of the gift tax imposition disposition filed against Namdaegu Tax Office.

Previously, Yoo Seom-na was accused of embezzlement and breach of trust amounting to 49.2 billion KRW, including receiving 4.8 billion KRW as consulting fees from Semo Group affiliate 'Dapanda' while operating the design company 'Moraeal Design' from 2011 to 2013.

Separately, the eldest daughter Yoo Seom-na and the second daughter Yoo Sang-na filed a lawsuit against the head of Namdaegu Tax Office to cancel the gift tax imposition. The sisters filed the lawsuit claiming that they succeeded the obligation to pay gift tax within the limits of the inheritance received from the late chairman Yoo.

The Administrative Division 1 of Daegu District Court (Presiding Judge Cha Kyung-hwan) ruled on the 18th that "Namdaegu Tax Office must cancel the gift tax imposition of approximately 15.3 billion KRW imposed on Yoo Seom-na." However, in the lawsuit filed by the second daughter Yoo Sang-na against the head of Namdaegu Tax Office to confirm the invalidity of the gift tax imposition of approximately 15.3 billion KRW, the court dismissed the plaintiff's claim.

The reason for the conflicting rulings regarding the two sisters was the legality of public notice delivery. Public notice delivery is a system where if the opposing party in a lawsuit does not receive documents, the content is considered delivered by posting in an official gazette, etc.

The court stated, "Considering that Yoo Seom-na was arrested by French police and this was reported in detail, it appears that the defendant (Namdaegu Tax Office) was fully aware that she was imprisoned in a French prison. Since there was no attempt to deliver the tax notice directly and public notice delivery was used instead, the requirements for public notice delivery were not met, so the imposition disposition is invalid."

On the other hand, regarding Yoo Sang-na's lawsuit, the court judged, "At the time of tax imposition, she was in Korea, and each gift tax notice delivery met the delivery requirements stipulated in the Framework Act on National Taxes, so the imposition disposition should be considered properly notified."

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