Prosecution Appeals Acquittal in Lee Yoo-jung's Appellate Trial, Former Constitutional Court Nominee

1st and 2nd Trial Courts: "Hard to Consider as Undisclosed Important Information"

Yoo Jeong Lee, Candidate for Constitutional Court Justice (Photo by Asia Economy DB)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] The prosecution has appealed the acquittal of former Constitutional Court nominee Lee Yoo-jung (54), who was indicted on charges of stock trading using undisclosed information.

According to the legal community on the 24th, the prosecution submitted a notice of appeal the day before to the appellate court of the Seoul Southern District Court Criminal Appeal Division 3-2 (Chief Judge Song Young-hwan), which is handling Lee's appeal trial.

Lee was indicted on charges of avoiding financial loss worth approximately 81 million won in stock trading by using undisclosed information of the health functional food manufacturing company 'Natural Endotech' (violation of the Capital Markets Act).

The stock price of Natural Endotech, in which Lee invested, soared to 91,000 won on April 9, 2015, but began to plummet on April 22 of the same month due to the 'Fake Baeksuo Scandal,' falling below 10,000 won within about a month.

Many investors suffered significant losses during this process, but Lee avoided losses by selling a large amount of stocks before the sharp decline. Natural Endotech was a client of 'Law Firm One,' to which Lee belonged.

The first trial court acquitted Lee, stating that the information obtained through his work as a lawyer did not meet the level of accuracy required for 'undisclosed important information' under the Capital Markets Act, nor was it sufficiently specific to be considered as having significant value in decision-making regarding the trading of particular securities. The second trial court also ruled that this judgment was appropriate.

Lee, who was nominated as a Constitutional Court justice candidate in 2017, resigned amid controversy after it was revealed before the confirmation hearing that he had earned a large amount of capital gains through stock investments.

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