'SK' Chey Tae-won's Cohabitant Deposits 2 Billion Won in Alimony to Director Noh So-young... Four Days After Ruling

"Hope for the fastest possible healing and recovery"

It has been reported that Kim Hee-young, director of the T&C Foundation and cohabitant of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, has transferred 2 billion KRW in alimony to No So-young, director of the Art Center Nabi. This came just four days after the court ruled, "The defendant (Director Kim) shall jointly pay 2 billion KRW to the plaintiff (Director No) along with Chairman Chey."

Choi Tae-won and cohabitant Kim Hee-young

On the afternoon of the 26th, Park Jong-woo, a lawyer from Law Firm Raum representing Director Kim, announced that Director Kim had directly transferred 2 billion KRW to Director No. It was reported that he stopped by the bank to make the transfer before departing on a scheduled overseas business trip. Lawyer Park explained, "As stated in the statement released immediately after the ruling, this is in line with our commitment to promptly fulfill the court-ordered obligation," adding, "It reflects a desire to quickly heal the wounds both parties suffered during the lengthy litigation and to allow time for recovery."

Earlier, on the 22nd, the Family Division 4 of the Seoul Family Court (Presiding Judge Lee Kwang-woo) ruled in a damages claim lawsuit filed by Director No against Director Kim, ordering Director Kim to jointly pay 2 billion KRW in alimony to Director No along with Chairman Chey. This pertains to the alimony amount that Chairman Chey was ordered to pay Director No in the divorce appeal trial, meaning Director Kim must also bear this responsibility. Director Kim's side argued that the marital relationship had already broken down and the statute of limitations had expired, but the court did not accept these claims.

After the ruling, Bae In-gu, legal representative for Director Kim, told reporters, "Regardless of the reasons, I sincerely apologize to Director No," but also stated, "It seems this lawsuit was planned by Director No to gain an advantage in the property division lawsuit." This is interpreted as an assertion that since the alimony claim lawsuit was filed during the divorce appeal trial, and the first trial ruled favorably for Chairman Chey, Director No’s side strategically filed the lawsuit to overturn that decision.

Subsequently, Director Kim issued a statement saying, "I once again apologize to Director No. I especially sincerely apologize to the children who must have been heartbroken watching the adults over the many years," and added, "I humbly accept the court’s judgment and will not appeal." He further stated, "I will do my best to promptly fulfill the obligations set by the court."

The divorce lawsuit between Chairman Chey and Director No is pending before the Supreme Court for final appeal. The main issue in the appeal is the appropriateness of the property division amount of 1.3808 trillion KRW, and it is expected that the related facts will be examined separately.

In December 2022, the first trial ordered Chairman Chey to pay Director No 66.5 billion KRW in property division and 100 million KRW in alimony. However, in May of this year, the second trial ruled that Chairman Chey must pay Director No 1.3808 trillion KRW in property division and 2 billion KRW in alimony. The court recognized Director No’s 'political influence' and 'support and household labor' as contributing to SK’s management activities and the formation and increase in value of SK shares. Chairman Chey appealed the second trial’s decision, and on the 21st, the Supreme Court assigned the case to its first division.

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