"Left a Review, Over 2 Years of Legal Battle... Lawyer Fees Alone 3.3 Million Won" [Review War]

①Company willing to sue to remove 'Critical Reviews'
"Cannot delete my review that played a role in publicizing the damage"

"I wrote the review in good faith for other consumers, but I have been summoned to the police multiple times and even hired a lawyer due to a civil lawsuit. I've been suffering for over two years, but I still have no intention of deleting the review."

Mr. A, who got involved in a lawsuit after posting a review on his blog, recently shared with a reporter the mental and financial distress he has experienced due to the dispute over the review with the business. Mr. A said, "To respond to the hospital's lawsuit, I spent 3.3 million KRW on lawyer fees and 1 million KRW on transcription costs."

In June 2022, Mr. A posted a review on his blog about an incident that occurred at an internal medicine clinic in Seoul and was subsequently sued by the hospital. He had visited the hospital for a health checkup but, due to the unfriendly attitude of the doctor, he requested to cancel the cervical cancer test during the examination and asked for a partial refund. However, the hospital suddenly called the police, leading to a conflict, and Mr. A posted a review about the hospital based on that day’s experience on his blog.

Mr. A said, "At the time, I was sitting and waiting in the obstetrics and gynecology examination chair, but the doctor didn’t come for a long time. I felt uncomfortable being left in the chair for so long, and when the doctor finally came and was asked why he was late, he replied rudely, saying 'Because I’m busy.' I was upset enough not to proceed with the test and requested a refund, but they immediately called the police," adding, "There was also a problem after the test. The test results were mistakenly recorded under someone else’s name, and I included this in my review as well."

The real dispute began when the hospital reported Mr. A’s post to the platform. Mr. A had included the hospital’s name in his review, and the hospital warned him through comments that they would sue if he did not delete the post. Later, they tried to persuade him by offering money to remove the review. Despite this, when Mr. A refused to take down the review, the hospital blocked it by reporting it to the platform or requested the local health center to delete the blog review entirely.

Feeling unfairly blocked, Mr. A posted several additional reviews. During this process, his reviews played a role in raising public awareness. People who had suffered from the hospital’s medical services began to gather on Mr. A’s blog to share their grievances. The reviews compiled by Mr. A, including their cases and testimonies, revealed various problems occurring at the hospital. He said, "There were many cases such as swapping test result documents, being forced to receive unnecessary injections, being charged extra for polyp removal but when asked to see the removed polyps, the hospital called the police. I received about 100 cases of damage reports through comments and messages," adding, "I hoped no more victims would arise, so I collected their reviews and posted them on my blog."

A confirmation letter that the victims delivered to Mr. A from the hospital. Photo by Mr. A

The hospital filed a complaint against Mr. A last year for obstruction of business and defamation, and this year proceeded with a lawsuit for deletion and injunction against posting. Nevertheless, Mr. A has no intention of deleting the review. Some people felt helped by the content (reviews) he created, and he feels it would be unfair to delete the review under the hospital’s pressure. Mr. A said, "I have decided not to delete the review, but it’s not easy to understand the cases of more than dozens of people, write them down in documents, and collect affidavits."

Increase in Legal Disputes... Pressure to Delete Reviews May Constitute Threats

It is understood that more consumers are seeking experts due to disputes over reviews with businesses. In particular, many cases involve businesses demanding deletion because consumers left negative reviews. Attorney Myung Soon-il of Rohana Law Firm said, "Although not many cases lead to formal representation, the number of consultations regarding review disputes has increased significantly," adding, "Even if a report is filed, unless it is truly malicious, the police often do not forward the case. The situation often escalates into legal disputes as bad feelings between consumers and businesses intensify over reviews."

Attorney Myung advised consumers on how to respond when asked to delete reviews: "In cases where lawsuits against platform reviews are successful, it is often when malicious false information was posted. For example, if you said an unordered dish tasted bad, that could be problematic," he said, "However, simply expressing personal opinions or evaluations such as 'It tastes bad' or 'I felt uncomfortable with the service' is difficult to prove as defamation by factual assertion." He added, "However, there is a high possibility that emotional conflicts between consumers and businesses escalate into legal disputes, so if you get involved in a lawsuit, seeking expert help is the most effective way to resolve the dispute."

Attorney Myung explained, "For example, if someone coerces you to delete a review by saying something that causes fear, like 'Be careful at night,' it could constitute a threat," adding, "If the review was deleted under such circumstances, it could be considered coercion by forcing someone to do an act they are not obligated to do, which constitutes the crime of coercion. Even if the deletion did not occur, it could be considered an attempted coercion."