In the Lawsuit for Damages over Cho Kuk's Illegal Surveillance, the National Intelligence Service Admits Surveillance but Claims Statute of Limitations Has Passed
[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] In a lawsuit filed by former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk against the state, claiming damages due to illegal surveillance by the National Intelligence Service (NIS), the government acknowledged the surveillance but argued that the statute of limitations has expired, making compensation impossible.
At a hearing held on the 8th, presided over by Judge Kim Jin-young of the Civil Division 34 at the Seoul Central District Court, former Minister Cho claimed that the NIS had illegally surveilled him and conducted public opinion manipulation, violating the Constitution and the NIS Act. Cho’s legal representative stated that, based on documents confirmed through an information disclosure request, there are seriously defamatory contents and that they plan to file a document submission order to review all the materials.
Former Minister Cho filed a lawsuit in June against the state, demanding 200 million KRW, alleging that the NIS surveilled him from 2011 to 2016 during the Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations. The state’s legal representative acknowledged the surveillance itself but argued, "There is doubt about the causal relationship between the state's illegal acts and the plaintiff’s mental damages, and the surveillance acts between 2008 and 2013 are barred by the statute of limitations." They also stated that considering the revision of the NIS Act to reduce the possibility of abuse of power, the plaintiff’s cooperation with the claim, and the NIS director’s public apology, the amount of damages should be reduced.
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The court said, "Since the basic facts are acknowledged, the statute of limitations will ultimately be the issue," adding, "It will be a legal question whether to consider the statute of limitations for each case individually or to view the entire matter as one and judge based on the time the last act (surveillance) ended."
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