A civil lawsuit filed by Lee Nak-yeon, co-representative of New Future, against a YouTuber who alleged his involvement with Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji), was referred to mediation but failed to reach an agreement, leading to a formal trial.
According to the legal community on the 24th, the Seoul Central District Court issued a decision on the 3rd to replace mediation (compulsory mediation) in the damages lawsuit filed by Representative Lee against YouTuber Jung Mo, ordering "the defendant to pay the plaintiff 5 million won and to broadcast an apology." The court also required Representative Lee to withdraw both the criminal complaint and the damages lawsuit against Jung.
However, since both parties filed objections to the court's mediation proposal, expressing their refusal, the case will proceed to a formal trial. Compulsory mediation is a procedure in civil lawsuits where the court resolves disputes by setting reconciliation terms without issuing a judgment. If either party does not accept the mediation proposal, the mediation fails.
Earlier, Jung, who runs a political and current affairs YouTube channel, posted a video in June last year claiming that Representative Lee was connected to Shincheonji. In the video, Jung emphasized that Lee mentioned "1 year and 17 days" during his study period in the United States, which coincides with the period Noah spent on the ark, arguing that Shincheonji and Noah are doctrinally closely related.
In response, Representative Lee denied any connection with Shincheonji and filed a damages lawsuit worth 50 million won in July last year.
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