Lease Dispute Mediation Committee Dismisses 4 Out of 10 Cases... Tenants Powerless Against Landlord Refusals [Real Estate A to Z]

Over the Past Five Years, 39% of Residential and 48% of Commercial Lease Disputes Dismissed Before Mediation Began
80-90% of Dismissals Due to Landlord Refusal, Exposing Institutional Loopholes
Calls for Introduction of Mediation Recommendations: "Should at Least Serve as Reference for Lawsuits"

Criticism has been raised that the Lease Dispute Mediation Committee (the Mediation Committee), established to resolve lease disputes, has become ineffective due to landlords (respondents) frequently exercising their right to refuse. It has been revealed that 4 to 5 out of every 10 mediation applications are dismissed without even being discussed, solely because the landlord refuses to participate.

Assemblyman Geon Tae Lee. Office of Assemblyman Geon Tae Lee.

According to data submitted by Assemblyman Geon-Tae Lee of the Democratic Party of Korea from the Korea Real Estate Board on September 28, 38.7% of residential lease disputes and 48.2% of commercial lease disputes processed over the past five years (from 2021 to August 2025) were dismissed without the mediation process even being initiated.

The overwhelming majority of dismissals were due to "the respondent's refusal to mediate." In residential disputes, 80.5% of dismissed cases, and in commercial disputes, 89.9%, were halted because the landlord refused mediation. Under the current system, participation by the respondent is not mandatory, so if the landlord refuses, the mediation process cannot even begin-a structural limitation. Even when mediation was initiated, the success rate for residential lease disputes stood at only 38.8% this year, while that for commercial lease disputes was just 32.4%.

Assemblyman Geon-Tae Lee stated, "The fact that 80 to 90 percent of dismissals are due to the respondent's refusal is clear evidence that this system is fundamentally unfair," adding, "The institutional loophole that allows landlords to simply refuse mediation only increases the suffering of desperate tenants and small business owners."

As an alternative, Assemblyman Lee proposed the introduction of a "mediation recommendation." This would allow the committee to present a recommendation based on fact-finding, even if the respondent does not comply with the mediation. He emphasized, "Even if the recommendation does not have legal binding force, if it can be used as important reference material in future lawsuits, it will encourage sincere participation from respondents and enhance the effectiveness of the system."

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