Ministry of Justice Wins Against Descendants of Pro-Japanese Collaborator Im Seonjun... First Recovery of Sale Proceeds

First Victory in Lawsuit to Recover Pro-Japanese Property

The Ministry of Justice has won a lawsuit to recover proceeds from the sale of pro-Japanese property from the descendants of pro-Japanese collaborator Im Seonjun.

On April 24, the Ministry of Justice announced that on April 22, it had secured a full victory in a lawsuit for the return of unjust enrichment against the descendants of Im Seonjun at the Seoul Western District Court, with the state being awarded the entire claim amount of approximately 53 million won.

Im Seonjun was a figure who actively cooperated in the forced abdication of Emperor Gojong and the signing of the Japan-Korea New Agreement (Jeongmi 7 Article Treaty). In return, he was granted the title of baron by the Japanese colonial authorities and received the Korean Annexation Commemorative Medal, among other honors. As a result, the Truth Commission on Pro-Japanese Collaborators recognized him as a pro-Japanese collaborator.

The Ministry of Justice discovered that Im Seonjun's descendants had inherited eight parcels of land in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, and sold them between 1993 and 2000. In January of this year, the ministry filed a lawsuit demanding that the proceeds from these sales be returned to the state.

This ruling marks the first case in which the Ministry of Justice directly filed and won a lawsuit for the recovery of pro-Japanese property after the Supreme Court precedent that regarded the heirs' claim of the statute of limitations as an "abuse of rights."

The Ministry of Justice plans to make every effort to ensure favorable verdicts for the state in other ongoing lawsuits to recover pro-Japanese property.

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