Selling Alcohol to Youth with Forged ID... Court Rules "Business Suspension Justified"

The court has repeatedly ruled that business suspension orders against restaurant owners who sold alcoholic beverages to minors accompanied by adults or who were deceived by forged IDs are justified.

According to the legal community on the 3rd, Judge Park Ji-sook of the Seoul Administrative Court, Administrative Division 9, recently ruled against Mr. A, who operates a restaurant, in a lawsuit seeking to cancel a business suspension order filed against the Seocho District Office in Seoul.

Previously, Mr. A was caught selling alcoholic beverages to four minors aged 15 to 16 in April last year and received a two-month business suspension. Police investigations revealed that the adult IDs presented by these individuals were either someone else’s or forged IDs. Mr. A argued that since IDs were presented and the group included individuals wearing heavy makeup, he did not think they were minors.

Mr. A filed an administrative lawsuit in objection. He cited a provision of the Food Sanitation Act stating that "if a food service operator is unaware of the youth status due to ID forgery or theft and is either not prosecuted or receives a suspended sentence, administrative sanctions are exempted." However, Judge Park stated, "It is difficult to conclude that the sale of alcohol to minors was due to mere negligence. No objective evidence was submitted to prove that Mr. A was deceived by the youths. Mr. A received a summary order in the related criminal proceedings."

Another business owner who claimed that they sold alcohol without recognizing the minors because they were accompanied by adult customers who frequently visited the restaurant also received the same judgment in a business suspension cancellation lawsuit. Judge Lee Kang-eun of the Seoul Administrative Court, Administrative Division 8, said, "It is hard to find any objective reason to accept the belief that the youths were adults," "and selling alcohol without verifying IDs cannot be considered a minor violation."

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