"Will Give 100 Million Won If Receiving 500 Million Won Settlement"
Legal Community: "Settlement Amount Deviates from Social Norms"
A parent who filed a complaint against Son Ung-jung, director of the SON Soccer Academy, on charges of child abuse has stated that the release of recorded conversations by Director Son's side constitutes "secondary harm."
Legal experts have expressed doubts about the controversy over secondary harm, suggesting that the complainant could instead face criminal charges.
Recently, attorney Seo Jeong-bin discussed the legal battle between Director Son and the parent in an interview with YTN Newswide.
Attorney Seo said, "The settlement amount was not predetermined, so we cannot criticize the complainant for demanding a large sum," but added, "The complainant's claims appear to exceed socially acceptable limits."
Regarding the complainant's proposal to Son's lawyer, offering "If you accept a settlement of 500 million won, I will secretly give you 100 million won," Seo explained, "This could be a criminal issue. It also violates the lawyer's professional ethics, and ultimately, setting the settlement at 500 million won and giving 100 million won to the lawyer could constitute fraud or breach of trust from the client's perspective."
On the claim that releasing the recordings amounts to secondary harm, he said, "There were disagreements during the settlement process. Director Son's side released the recordings to refute the complainant's claims. It is questionable whether this can be considered secondary harm."
He added, "Especially when looking at the content of the recordings, as I mentioned earlier, there are many statements that could be problematic," and "The complainant was not emotionally mentioning the settlement amount."
The recordings released to the media on the 28th by Son's legal representative, attorney Kim Hyeong-woo (Myungryun Law Firm), contained evidence that the complainant demanded a minimum settlement of 500 million won.
In the released recordings, the complainant mentioned Son's son, soccer player Son Heung-min, saying things like, "Considering the damage to the image, isn't 500 million won worth it?", "It's fortunate I didn't ask for 2 billion won," and "You block the media and continue soccer, so is 500 million won too much?"
When attorney Kim rejected the settlement as excessive, the complainant proposed a rebate, saying, "If you accept 500 million won, I will secretly give you 100 million won in cash."
Meanwhile, Director Son and two coaches from the soccer academy were accused in March of corporal punishment and verbal abuse against trainee A and others during a training camp. Coach A allegedly struck trainee C's thigh with a corner flag, causing injuries requiring two weeks of medical treatment. Coach B is accused of hitting some players on their buttocks, calves, and heads, and pulling sideburns. Director Son is accused of verbally abusing trainees who struggled to keep up with training.
The Gangwon Provincial Police Agency, which investigated the case, referred them to the prosecution last April on charges of violating the Child Welfare Act (child abuse).
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