Mitsubishi Ignores Forced Labor Compensation... 'Patent Seizure Objection' Re-Appeal Dismissed

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan, which has ignored compensation for forced labor victims during the Japanese colonial period, appealed against the seizure order of its patent rights in South Korea, but the Supreme Court rejected the appeal.

According to the legal community on the 11th, the Supreme Court Civil Division 1 dismissed without further review the appeal against the seizure order of patent rights filed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries on December 27 last year, concerning forced labor victim Park Hae-ok. Dismissal without further review means the court decides the case is not subject to appeal and dismisses it without additional examination.

In November 2018, the Supreme Court confirmed a ruling ordering Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to pay compensation to Korean victims and their families who were mobilized for forced labor during the Japanese colonial period.

However, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries did not comply with the ruling, and the court seized two trademark rights (belonging to grandmother Yang Geum-deok) and six patent rights (belonging to grandmothers Lee Dong-ryeon, Park Hae-ok, and Kim Seong-ju) in South Korea.

Among these, the seizure of two trademark rights and two patent rights belonging to grandmothers Yang Geum-deok and Kim Seong-ju was already confirmed with dismissal of the appeal, and a special liquidation order was issued. The two patent rights seizure requests for grandmother Park Hae-ok are also expected to proceed with the special liquidation order.

However, Mitsubishi is currently undergoing legal procedures at the Daejeon District Court, opposing the special liquidation order. Additionally, the appeal case regarding the seizure order of patent rights for grandmother Lee Dong-ryeon is still under review.

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