No So-young, director of 'Art Center Nabi,' has been ordered by the first-instance court to vacate the SK Group headquarters. This ruling came about 20 days after the appellate court decision in the divorce lawsuit between SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Director No.
On the 21st, Judge Lee Jae-eun of the Civil Division 36 at the Seoul Central District Court ruled partially in favor of the plaintiff in the first-instance lawsuit filed by SK Innovation against Director No, demanding the delivery of real estate and other claims.
Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group (left) and Director Noh So-young of Art Center Nabi. [Image source=Yonhap News]
The court stated, “Since the sublease contract between the plaintiff and the defendant was lawfully terminated according to the specified date, the defendant has the obligation to deliver the leased property,” and ruled that “Art Center Nabi must deliver the real estate to SK Innovation and pay approximately 1,045.6 million KRW plus interest.”
It added, “The claim that the defendant cannot unilaterally terminate the sublease contract in this case, or that it constitutes abuse of rights or breach of trust, is not accepted.”
Earlier, the representative for Director No stated at the final hearing on the 31st of last month, “If the plaintiff still has no intention to mediate, we have no further claims or evidence to present,” and added, “There was a mention related to this case in the Seoul High Court divorce ruling between Chairman Chey Tae-won and the defendant. We expect the plaintiff to review that context and take appropriate measures.”
The real estate SK Innovation is demanding to vacate is the 4th floor of the Seorin Building, SK Group headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, where Art Center Nabi is located. The Seorin Building is owned by SK REITs, and SK Innovation leased it and subleased it to Art Center Nabi. Although the building lease contract ended in September 2019, Art Center Nabi has been occupying it without permission, causing significant operational losses. Therefore, SK Innovation filed a lawsuit demanding eviction in April last year.
As Director No’s side did not respond, the court initially scheduled a judgment date after a default judgment. However, after the defendant submitted a late response, the court canceled the default judgment. Subsequently, to narrow the differences between the parties, the court held two mediation sessions in November last year, but mediation failed, leading to a formal trial.
This lawsuit also served as a basis for calculating alimony in the appellate divorce case between Chairman Chey and Director No. The Family Division 2 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judge Kim Si-cheol), which handled the divorce case, mentioned in relation to the 2 billion KRW alimony that although Chairman Chey made a significant donation to Kim Hee-young, the cohabitant, establishing the T&C Foundation, SK Innovation filed the eviction lawsuit, which likely caused Director No considerable mental distress.
Meanwhile, Director No’s damages lawsuit against Kim Hee-young, chairperson of the T&C Foundation and Chairman Chey’s cohabitant, is also ongoing. The ruling for this case is scheduled for August 22.
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