Chairman Lee Jae-yong One Year into Office, Attends Trial... Possible Verdict Hearing Next Month

Lee Jae-yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, who marked his first year in office, appeared in court on the 27th. The first trial has been ongoing for over three years, and a final hearing could be held as early as next month.

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong is attending the continuation of the first trial related to 'accounting fraud and unfair merger' held at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu on the morning of the 27th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The 105th hearing on the 'unfair merger and accounting fraud' case was held under the jurisdiction of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 25-2 (Presiding Judge Park Jeong-je, Judges Ji Gwi-yeon and Park Jeong-gil).

Chairman Lee was indicted in September 2020 on charges of illegal activities related to the merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, aimed at strengthening group control and ensuring stable succession of management rights. He also faces allegations of accounting fraud related to the accounting irregularities of Samsung BioLogics, a subsidiary of Cheil Industries.

Upon appearing in court, Chairman Lee did not respond to questions from reporters about his thoughts and proceeded directly to the courtroom. Samsung is reportedly not planning any special events on the occasion of his first anniversary in office.

Following this hearing, a final hearing could be held on the 17th of next month. Typically, a verdict is delivered about a month after the final hearing, but due to the extensive case records and complex content, it is likely that the first trial verdict will be announced after this year.