First Hearing in LG Family Inheritance Lawsuit: "There Was a Memo Containing Former Chairman Yooji's Will"

In the first hearing of the inheritance-related lawsuit filed by the three women of the LG family against Koo Kwang-mo, chairman of LG Group, testimony emerged that there was a memo from the late former chairman Koo Bon-moo indicating his intention to pass on the 'management assets' to Chairman Koo, and that the three women also confirmed this.

LG Twin Towers, Yeouido, Seoul

The 11th Civil Division of the Seoul Western District Court (Chief Judge Park Tae-il) held the first hearing on the 5th for the inheritance recovery lawsuit filed by Mrs. Kim Young-sik, wife of the late former chairman Koo, and their two daughters, Koo Yeon-kyung, CEO of LG Welfare Foundation, and Koo Yeon-soo, against Chairman Koo. On this day, Ha Beom-jong, President of LG Corporation's Management Support Division, was examined as a witness. President Ha was in charge of the financial management team of the group's holding company before and after the death of former chairman Koo, overseeing the family’s asset management and inheritance division negotiations.

The key issue that day was the existence of a will by former chairman Koo. The plaintiffs claimed, "Kim Young-sik and Koo Yeon-kyung were misled into believing there was a will stating that Chairman Koo would inherit all LG shares, and thus signed the agreement." However, President Ha, who attended as a witness, stated, "The term 'will' was not used, but there was a memo reflecting the late chairman Koo’s intentions," adding, "The memo was created as a reference material during explanations to the plaintiffs."

President Ha further explained, "The memo contained the late chairman Koo’s intention that the 'management assets' be inherited by Chairman Koo." The memo is currently discarded. President Ha said, "The inheritance investigation was completed in 2020, and since former chairman Koo had passed away, the staff apparently discarded the memo," adding, "It is standard procedure to dispose of related documents once the inheritance process is complete." The plaintiffs opposed this, expressing disbelief over the destruction of important documents by the staff.

Additionally, President Ha testified that the inheritance was conducted with sufficient consent. He said, "After former chairman Koo passed away, around June to July 2018, during the inheritance procedure report, the memo was shown to Kim Young-sik and Koo Yeon-kyung," adding, "The plaintiffs expressed some regret, so after consultation, the inheritance was divided and proceeded without objection." According to President Ha, the inheritance agreement involved transferring 2.52% of shares to the plaintiffs, excluding the 15% stake necessary for Chairman Koo to exercise management rights.

Previously, Mrs. Kim and her two daughters filed the inheritance recovery lawsuit against Chairman Koo on February 28. The late former chairman Koo, who passed away in May 2018, left assets worth approximately 2 trillion won, including 11.28% of LG shares. Chairman Koo inherited 8.76% of the 11.28% shares from former chairman Koo, while the three women received some LG shares (2.01% for CEO Koo Yeon-kyung, 0.51% for Koo Yeon-soo) and the former chairman’s personal assets. The former chairman’s personal assets are valued at about 500 billion won, including financial investment products, real estate, and artworks.

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