Choi Seong-hae, Former President of Dongyang University, Wins Final Victory in Executive Appointment Cancellation Lawsuit

Victory in Retrial Against Ministry of Education
Court: "Ministry of Education Abused Discretion"
Overturns Supreme Court Ruling of "Lawful Disposition"

Former Dongyang University President Choi Seong-hae won the final verdict in a lawsuit against the Ministry of Education, demanding the cancellation of the decision to revoke his executive qualification.

Choi Seong-hae, former president of Dongyang University. [Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the legal community on the 17th, the ruling in the retrial that ruled in favor of the plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by former President Choi against the Minister of Education to cancel the 'revocation of approval for executive appointment' was finalized as neither party filed an objection within the deadline.

Previously, in November 2020, the Ministry of Education revoked the approval of former President Choi's appointment as a director of the Hyeonam Foundation. According to the Private School Act, if the chairman's direct ascendant is to serve as president, approval from two-thirds of the board of directors and the competent authority is required. However, it was because during the process of appointing former President Choi as a director of the school corporation in 2010, the father and son did not follow the board or Ministry of Education approval procedures.

In response, former President Choi's side filed a lawsuit that year, arguing, "The Ministry of Education did not request correction before revoking the approval for executive appointment, which is illegal, and revoking the approval belatedly for an issue from 10 years ago constitutes abuse of discretion."

The first trial court dismissed former President Choi's claim, stating that since the former chairman died in 2013, the illegal status could not be corrected, so there was no need to request correction. However, the second trial court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, stating, "The situation at that time does not appear to be a clear case that cannot be corrected."

The Supreme Court sent the case back to the Daejeon High Court, stating, "Former President Choi served as president of Dongyang University for a long time without meeting the qualification requirements, and during that time, the former chairman passed away, so it cannot be seen that there is a possibility or effectiveness of correcting the illegal status afterward," and ruled that the Ministry of Education's decision to revoke the approval for executive appointment without requesting correction was lawful.

Accordingly, the retrial court also judged that there was no fault in the Ministry of Education's decision not to request correction first. However, the court accepted former President Choi's claim that the Ministry of Education abused its discretion and ruled in favor of the plaintiff.

The court stated, "Revoking approval for executive appointment due to illegality related to the qualification requirements for the president after more than 10 years greatly undermines legal stability," and "The Ministry of Education made an illegal decision by exceeding and abusing its discretion."

Meanwhile, former President Choi was the first person to raise suspicions of forgery regarding the certificate of commendation for Cho Min, daughter of Cho Kuk, leader of the Innovation Party.