Pohang Mayor Lee Gang-deok Strongly Urges Government to Show Decisive Action on Earthquake Lump-Sum Compensation

Follow-up Measures Implemented After Expert Legal Consultation on State Compensation in the Seoul Metropolitan Area

Promotion of Free Legal Counseling and Enhanced Publicity to Protect the Rights of Socially Vulnerable Groups

Mayor Lee Kang-deok of Pohang City once again strongly urged the government to make a decisive decision for collective compensation regarding the Pohang-induced earthquake damage compensation lawsuit ruling.

On the 11th, Mayor Lee Kang-deok of Pohang held a press briefing at City Hall regarding the progress of the Pohang induced earthquake damage compensation lawsuit.

On the 11th, Mayor Lee held a press conference at the city hall briefing room, continuously demanding government-level measures for collective compensation for the Pohang-induced earthquake and stated that he would actively work to prevent infringement of the legal rights of affected citizens.

The mayor emphasized the necessity of a government-led collective compensation solution, citing reasons such as administrative waste due to consultations on lawsuits and issuance of required documents, increased economic burden on affected residents due to the reality of a lawsuit frenzy, the imminent statute of limitations, and the futility of continuing legal battles when state responsibility is clear.

He also explained that to prevent infringement of the rights of affected residents, the city will continue to promote free legal consultations, guidance and publicity through community leaders, hold regional touring briefings, and implement measures to protect the rights of socially vulnerable groups such as the elderly, disabled, and residents of nursing facilities.

On the 8th, Mayor Lee personally met with leading law firm representatives from the Seoul metropolitan area and law school professors specializing in state compensation in Seoul to seek advice on measures for collective compensation related to the Pohang-induced earthquake lawsuit.

Attendees included Attorney Choi Kyo-il of Haesong Law Firm, as well as Cho Byung-hyun of Pyeongan Law Firm, Seo Sang-su of Seoro Law Firm, and Professor Park Hyun-jung of Hanyang University Law School, an expert in state compensation.

The legal experts expressed that while it would be difficult to overturn state responsibility in the appellate trial, the compensation amount could be adjusted. They also reached a consensus that since all citizens residing in Pohang at the time of the earthquake are victims, the government should promote a collective compensation plan to prevent a lawsuit frenzy.

Based on these advisory results, Pohang City plans to directly communicate with government and National Assembly officials to elicit a government declaration of intent for collective compensation, including waiving the benefits of the statute of limitations and fulfilling the state's responsibility for mental damages.

Although there are legal restrictions on local government actions in lawsuits against the state, the city plans to actively work within the scope of laws to devise measures to alleviate citizen inconvenience and strengthen public communication to ensure that the legal rights of affected residents are not infringed.

Mayor Lee Kang-deok stated, “As the state's responsibility for the earthquake has become clear, we will strongly demand extraordinary national measures such as collective compensation for consolation damages from the National Assembly and government. Since a lawsuit frenzy where all Pohang citizens become parties to the lawsuit has become a reality, we will minimize citizen inconvenience by gathering opinions from legal experts.”

Pohang City operates 30 public information centers within the region and, in response to the surge in citizens issuing resident registration abstracts for lawsuit participation, has deployed emergency support personnel to townships and neighborhoods. The city is actively working to alleviate citizen inconvenience related to the induced earthquake damage compensation lawsuit.