Mitsubishi, Refuses Forced Labor Asset Sale Order... "Will File Reconsideration"

On the 27th, at the Seoul High Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, the victims of forced labor by Mitsubishi and their bereaved families made a statement after the second trial verdict of the damages lawsuit./Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan, which has ignored compensation for forced labor victims during the Japanese colonial period, has reportedly filed a final appeal with the Korean Supreme Court against a Korean court's order to sell its assets.

According to Kyodo News on the 16th, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries filed the final appeal after the Daejeon District Court's Civil Appeal Divisions 3 and 4 consecutively dismissed immediate appeals against the special liquidation (sale) order of trademark and patent rights related to forced labor victims Yang Geum-deok and Kim Seong-ju in January.

Previously, on September 27 last year, the Daejeon District Court Civil Division 28 single judge decided to sell bonds worth about 500 million won seized from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

The specific items for sale are two trademark rights (related to Yang Geum-deok's claim) and two patent rights (related to Kim Seong-ju's claim).

The amount that can be secured through the sale is approximately 209.7 million won per person (including interest and delayed damages).

This is the first time a Korean court has ordered the sale of Japanese company assets related to forced labor victims during the Japanese colonial period.

If Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' final appeal is also dismissed by the Supreme Court, procedures for the sale will proceed.

Due to the appeal, trademark and patent rights cannot be exercised during the trial process, so it is expected to take some time until the actual sale.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and the Japanese government maintain the position that issues regarding the claims of forced labor victims were resolved by the 1965 Korea-Japan Claims Agreement.

The Japanese government is also considering retaliatory measures if the asset sale materializes, so the final sale decision is expected to affect Korea-Japan relations.

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