Government Wins Second Trial in Lawsuit for Unjust Land Profits from Descendants of Pro-Japanese Collaborator Igiyong

The government won the appeal in a lawsuit demanding the return of unfair profits worth around 200 million won from land inherited by the descendants of pro-Japanese collaborator Lee Gi-yong.

Seoul Central District Court, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

On the 11th, the Civil Division 8-3 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judges Choi Seung-won, Kim Tae-ho, Kim Bong-won) ruled in favor of the government in the appeal trial of the unjust enrichment claim filed against two descendants of Lee Gi-yong, including Mr. Lee, upholding the first trial's decision.

Previously, the first trial ordered the two defendants to return approximately 147 million won each, totaling about 290 million won, to the government. The defendants appealed the decision.

The land in question consists of two parcels in Ipae-dong, Namyangju-si, Gyeonggi Province, which were owned by Lee Gi-yong's descendants but have since been transferred to Namyangju City. The government calculated the unfair profits based on the compensation received by Lee Gi-yong's descendants at the time of the land transfer to Namyangju City.

After the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty was signed in 1910, Lee Gi-yong was granted the title of Viscount by the Japanese government and was later elected as a member of the House of Peers, the upper house of the Japanese parliament. He was included in the list of pro-Japanese and anti-national collaborators announced by the Committee for the Investigation of Pro-Japanese and Anti-National Acts in 2009.

In accordance with the Act on the Property of Pro-Japanese Collaborators, the government filed a lawsuit in 2021 to claim the return of unfair profits for the national ownership of 11 land parcels owned by the descendants of four pro-Japanese collaborators: Lee Gi-yong, Lee Gyu-won, Hong Seung-mok, and Lee Hae-seung.

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