Democratic Party Visits Trust Company in Protest... "Eviction Lawsuit for Trust Jeonse Fraud Victims Should Be Delayed"

Trust company side "We are considering, but there are limitations in the system"

The Democratic Party visited trust companies urging them to withdraw or postpone eviction lawsuits against victims of trust jeonse fraud.

Park Ju-min, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 31st, members of the Democratic Party's Euljiro Committee and the Special Committee on Jeonse Fraud Countermeasures visited Shinyoung Real Estate Trust in Yeouido, Seoul, to protest and held a meeting with trust company officials. Attending from the Democratic Party were Park Jumin, chairman of the Euljiro Committee; Moon Jinseok, secretary of the Jeonse Fraud Special Committee; and lawmakers Yeom Taeyoung, Kim Namgeun, Park Hongbae, Lee Sujin, and Lim Miae. From the trust companies, representatives included Park Sunmoon, CEO of Shinyoung Real Estate Trust; Lee Yucheong, CEO of Korea Trust; Park Myeongho, vice president of KB Real Estate Trust; Park Junbo, executive director of Woori Asset Trust; Kim Seongyun, managing director of Shinhan Asset Trust; and Choi Jaeok, managing director of Mugunghwa Trust.

The Democratic Party demanded that trust companies withdraw or delay eviction lawsuits against victims of trust jeonse fraud. Trust jeonse fraud refers to deceiving tenants by falsely presenting properties entrusted to trust companies as their own real estate and embezzling the tenants' jeonse deposits. The trust companies holding ownership of the properties filed eviction lawsuits against tenants, claiming the contracts were invalid. Secretary Moon said, "We agree that jeonse fraud is a social disaster caused by legal and institutional shortcomings and that victims must be actively protected," adding, "(While trust companies) may have different views, even small concessions would help the victims."

However, the trust companies expressed that there are institutional limitations. They argued that since they only lend their names to lending financial institutions, substantive discussions about withdrawing or postponing eviction lawsuits should be held with the creditor groups. When Lawmaker Kim pointed out, "The trust companies filed lawsuits on the grounds of unauthorized lease contracts, which is inconsistent with their public nature," the trust representatives responded, "When lending financial institutions inquire about the issue, we agree to the power of attorney for the lawsuit. The trust companies are considering various issues, but there are institutional limitations."

Going forward, the Democratic Party plans to hold roundtable discussions with creditor groups and trust companies. After the meeting, Lawmaker Kim told reporters, "The results of the eviction lawsuit conducted by KB Trust will be announced on the 21st of next month," adding, "Since it will take considerable time to hold a roundtable at the National Assembly, I asked the trust companies to step forward and cooperate before then."

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