[News Terms] What Is the Difference Between 'Property Division' and 'Alimony' in the Divorce Ruling of Chey Tae-won and Noh So-young?

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group (left) and Director Noh So-young of Art Center Nabi [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] The first trial result of the divorce lawsuit between SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Art Center Nabi Director Noh So-young has drawn attention. The core issues in their divorce lawsuit were 'property division' and 'alimony.' Although property division and alimony are often confused, they are distinctly different concepts.

Simply put, alimony is compensation for mental damages. It is claimed by the spouse against the at-fault spouse when the divorce occurs due to one party's responsibility. Property division refers to dividing the joint property accumulated by the couple during the marriage into each person's share.

Law: "Chey Tae-won to pay Noh So-young 100 million KRW in alimony and 66.5 billion KRW in property division"

The Family Agreement Division 2 of the Seoul Family Court (Presiding Judge Kim Hyun-jung) accepted the divorce lawsuit between Chairman Chey and Director Noh on the 6th and ruled, "Chairman Chey shall pay Director Noh 100 million KRW in alimony and 66.5 billion KRW in property division." This comes 34 years after their marriage and about five years after the divorce lawsuit began.

Chairman Chey revealed the existence of an extramarital child in December 2015 and expressed his intention to divorce Director Noh. In July 2017, he applied for divorce mediation at the court but failed to reach an agreement, leading to a formal lawsuit.

Director Noh, who had maintained a stance against divorce, filed a counterclaim in December 2019 agreeing to divorce. She claimed 300 million KRW in alimony and 42.29% (6.5 million shares) of SK stocks held by Chairman Chey as property division. Based on the previous day's closing price, this amounts to about 1.37 trillion KRW. Chairman Chey holds approximately 12.97 million shares, or 17.5%, of SK stocks.

Chairman Chey's side has argued that the stocks held are 'unique property' inherited from his late father, former Chairman Chey Jong-hyun. Unique property refers to property owned before marriage and property acquired in one's name during marriage, which is generally excluded from property division. On the other hand, Director Noh's side has argued that due to the long marriage period, gifted and inherited assets should be considered joint property.

How are property division and alimony, which are different in nature, calculated?

When a couple divorces by mutual agreement, they can also negotiate and agree on property division. However, if a smooth agreement is impossible, property division must be decided through litigation.

There is no clear standard for dividing the couple's joint property, but it is known that the contribution to property formation is primarily considered. Therefore, it is important for parties in a divorce lawsuit to prove their contribution to property formation.

Since alimony, which corresponds to compensation for mental damages, cannot be calculated by applying a uniform standard, it is determined by the court's discretion.

At this time, the court comprehensively considers all circumstances such as the at-fault spouse's financial status, the cause and details of the family breakdown, the status and position of the divorce parties, the length of the marriage, child custody, and the degree of suffering to calculate alimony.