Fair Trade Commission Recovers 101.6 Billion Won in Unfair Penalties Over 5 Years

Analysis of Final Judgments in the First Half of 2024
95% of the KRW 1.986 Trillion in Fines Were Lawfully Imposed

The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has returned a total of 101.6 billion KRW in fines to companies through lawsuits over the past five years, which were originally imposed for unfair practices such as abuse of power.

According to the analysis of the "2024 First Half Final Judgment Results" announced by the FTC on the 19th, out of the 1.986 trillion KRW in fines confirmed by court rulings from 2020 to the first half of this year, the legality of the disposition was upheld for 1.8844 trillion KRW (94.9%). The total amount refunded to companies due to losing administrative lawsuits over the past five years was 101.6 billion KRW. When refunding the fines, an additional interest-like surcharge is paid, calculated based on the average interest rate of regular deposits at commercial banks for the period from the date the company paid the fine to the refund date. An FTC official stated, "The surcharge amount on the refunded fines is currently not estimated."

During this period, out of a total of 393 lawsuits with confirmed court rulings, the FTC won 357 cases (including partial wins), resulting in a win rate of 90.8%. Looking only at the first half of this year, the FTC won 39 out of 43 cases (including partial wins), with a win rate of 90.7%. Major cases with confirmed wins in the first half of this year include the imposition of a 61.7 billion KRW fine on manufacturers and sellers of PHC (prestressed high-strength concrete) piles for unfair joint conduct, a 34.7 billion KRW fine on Changshin INC for unfair support practices, and a 7.2 billion KRW fine on Hanwha Solutions for unfair support practices.

The case with the largest fine amount among those won by the FTC was the abuse of market dominance by Google. In December 2021, Google was ordered to take corrective measures and fined 224.9 billion KRW for prohibiting domestic smartphone manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics from modifying the Android operating system (OS), thereby obstructing market entry by competing OS manufacturers. Following Google's appeal against the disposition, legal battles began in January 2022, but the FTC won entirely in the second trial. The Supreme Court appeal is currently pending.

Eight affiliates of the Harim Group were fined 4.9 billion KRW for unfair support to Olpum, a company owned by the group’s heir, but they filed an administrative lawsuit against the disposition and lost in the second trial in February this year. Three Japanese automobile parts manufacturers, including Mitsubishi, also lost in the High Court ruling related to a 7.8 billion KRW fine for collusion.

Recently, the FTC has faced criticism for overreaching in investigations, sanctions, and fine impositions, following consecutive losses in major cases such as allegations of private interest diversion by SK Group and unfair support sanctions against SPC Group affiliates. The FTC stated, "Since losses in some cases could undermine trust in the FTC’s overall dispositions, we will further strengthen our capabilities to prove legal violations and improve the quality of our rulings going forward."