Prosecutors Indict 7 Employees Who Moved to SK After Stealing LG Battery Technology Without Detention

Prosecutors Investigate 29 SK Innovation Employees, 17 Deferred Prosecution, 11 Cleared of Charges

Employees of SK Innovation who transferred from LG Energy Solution (formerly LG Chem's battery division) to SK Innovation and stole LG's battery technology have been brought to trial.

Prosecutors Indict 7 Employees Who Moved to SK After Stealing LG Battery Technology Without Detention

Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office Information Technology Crime Investigation Division (Chief Prosecutor Lee Chun) announced on the 31st that seven SK Innovation employees were indicted without detention on charges including violation of the Industrial Technology Protection Act. These employees have since moved to SK On.

According to the prosecution, these individuals are accused of leaking, acquiring, or using industrial technology and trade secrets related to secondary battery design and manufacturing processes of LG Chem when they transferred from LG Chem to SK Innovation between 2017 and late 2018.

The prosecution investigated 29 SK Innovation employees, concluding with 17 deferred prosecutions, 11 cleared of charges, and 1 case dismissed due to lack of prosecutorial jurisdiction.

LG Energy Solution filed a police complaint against SK Innovation in May 2019, claiming that after about 100 employees moved en masse from LG Energy Solution to SK Innovation between 2017 and 2019, SK, a latecomer in the battery business, blatantly poached their staff.

LG Energy Solution also filed a trade secret infringement dispute against SK Innovation with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), but ultimately reached a settlement in April 2021, with SK agreeing to pay LG 2 trillion won.

The prosecution considered the settlement between the two companies and the withdrawal of the complaint, and even in cases where charges were recognized, limited indictments to cases involving significant value of the infringed information and serious acts.