Rare Disease During 37 Years as Firefighter... "Recognized as National Merit Despite Unclear Cause"

Court. [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] A court ruling has determined that a firefighter who retired due to a rare disease should be recognized as a national merit recipient if there is a certain degree of acknowledged connection between the performance of official duties and the onset of the disease, even if the exact cause of the illness is unclear.

Today (22nd), the Administrative Division 1 of Daegu High Court (Presiding Judge Taehyun Kim) announced that it overturned the original ruling and ruled in favor of Mr. A in the appeal trial of the lawsuit he filed against the Daegu Regional Veterans Affairs Office Chief, seeking cancellation of the decision that he did not meet the criteria for national merit.

Mr. A, who had been working as a firefighter since 1977, was diagnosed with cerebellar atrophy in 2004 and received a Grade 3 disability rating for brain lesions, suffering from walking disabilities. Despite his illness, he continued to work as a firefighter but collapsed during a night shift in 2014 and was honorably discharged after it was determined that he could no longer continue working.

Subsequently, Mr. A claimed that his illness was caused by repeated exposure to harmful substances at fire scenes during the 1970s and 1980s when firefighting equipment was inadequate, and applied for registration as a national merit recipient with the Daegu Veterans Affairs Office. However, the office responded that "it is difficult to consider the disease as directly caused by the performance of duties or training" and stated that he did not qualify as a national merit recipient (injured military personnel) but was eligible as a veteran beneficiary (injured military personnel due to accident).

During the trial, Mr. A reportedly argued, "I was very healthy until my appointment as a public official as a former Marine, with no family history or genetic causes," and "the disease was caused by prolonged exposure to harmful substances and heat at fire scenes, so the Daegu Veterans Affairs Office's decision that I do not meet the criteria for national merit is illegal."

The appellate court stated, "Considering that Mr. A has no genetic predisposition or family history for the disease, modern medicine has not identified the cause of cerebellar atrophy, but environmental factors such as inhalation of harmful chemicals are presumed causes, it is judged that there is a significant causal relationship between the plaintiff’s official duties and the onset of the disease," and ruled, "The first trial’s failure to recognize this is unjust and must be overturned," thus ruling in favor of the plaintiff.

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