Choi Tae-won and Noh So-young Both Appeal First Instance Divorce Lawsuit Ruling

In Response to the Director Noh's Initial Appeal

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group (left) and Noh So-young, Director of Art Center Nabi. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has appealed the first trial of the divorce lawsuit he is undergoing with No So-young, director of the Art Center Nabi.

According to the court on the 22nd, Chairman Chey's legal team submitted an appeal to the Family Agreement Division 2 of the Seoul Family Court (Chief Judge Kim Hyunjung), the first trial court, the day before. It is known that this was a countermeasure against No's prior appeal and that they do not dispute the property division amount of 66.5 billion KRW recognized in the first trial.

Earlier, No submitted an appeal on the 19th, stating "I completely reject the ruling" regarding the first trial that ordered her to receive only about 66.5 billion KRW in property division. No's legal team stated, "It is difficult to accept the judgment that SK shares owned by Chairman Chey are 'exclusive property' and excluded from property division," adding, "Those shares are not stocks inherited or gifted by the late Chairman Chey Jong-hyun to Chairman Chey Tae-won. They were purchased during the marriage period in 1994 for 280 million KRW, and their value has increased to over 3 trillion KRW through Chairman Chey's management activities."

They further emphasized, "No contributed through her support during the value formation process," and "It is also hard to accept the legal principle that housewife support and domestic labor alone cannot divide business assets such as stocks."

On the 6th, the first trial accepted the divorce lawsuit filed by No against Chairman Chey and ruled, "The two shall divorce," ordering Chairman Chey to pay 100 million KRW in alimony and 66.5 billion KRW in property division to No. However, the SK shares held by Chairman Chey, which No requested, were not included in the property division.

The court at that time explained, "It is difficult to see that No substantially contributed to the formation, maintenance, and value increase of the SK shares, so they were judged as 'exclusive property' and excluded from the property division," adding, "Only the shares of affiliates held by Chairman Chey, real estate, retirement pay, deposits, and No So-young's property were subject to division." The court also added, "The amount of property division was determined by comprehensively considering all circumstances such as the marital life process and period, and the formation background of the property subject to division."

Previously, Chairman Chey and No were married in September 1988 at the Blue House during the first year of the late President Roh Tae-woo's inauguration and had three children but eventually separated.

Chairman Chey publicly revealed the existence of an extramarital child in 2015 and announced his intention to divorce No. In July 2017, he applied for divorce mediation, officially starting legal proceedings. After mediation failed, formal litigation began in February 2018.

No, who opposed the divorce, filed a counterclaim against Chairman Chey in December 2019, demanding 300 million KRW in alimony and half of the 12,975,472 SK shares held by Chairman Chey, amounting to 6,487,736 shares, as property division.

No also applied for a provisional injunction to prohibit the disposal of shares until the divorce and property division lawsuit against Chairman Chey was concluded. The court partially accepted No's application and prohibited Chairman Chey from disposing of 3.5 million shares.

Throughout the trial, Chairman Chey's side argued that the shares in question originated from SK affiliate shares gifted or inherited from his father, the late Chairman Chey, and should be regarded as exclusive property. Exclusive property refers to property owned by one spouse before marriage or acquired in their name during marriage, which is generally not subject to property division.

On the other hand, No's side has argued that in the case of long-term married couples, property gifted or inherited by a spouse should also be considered joint property. They argued that since Chairman Chey became the largest shareholder of SK through the merger with SK C&C (formerly Korea Telecom) after marriage, it should be regarded as property formed during the marriage.

The Supreme Court views the claim for property division by a divorcing spouse as having a supportive nature to maintain the other party's livelihood after divorce but fundamentally holds that the main purpose is the liquidation of joint property formed through mutual cooperation during marriage.

Furthermore, even if the property was formed based on inherited wealth, if it is recognized that the wife's domestic labor and support contributed to the acquisition and maintenance of the property, it can be subject to property division.

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