Owned by 11 People Including Wife Lee Soonja and Eldest Son Jeon Jaeguk
Seoul Western District Court: "Fines Extinguished Due to Jeon Du-hwan's Death"
The prosecution's attempt to transfer ownership of the residence in Yeonhui-dong, Seodaemun-gu, owned by the late former President Jeon Du-hwan and his wife Lee Soon-ja, in order to recover unpaid fines, has failed.
On the 7th, the 12th Civil Division of the Seoul Western District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Jin-young) dismissed the lawsuit filed by the government against 11 co-owners of the Yeonhui-dong house, including Mrs. Lee, former secretary Lee Taek-soo, and eldest son Jeon Jae-guk, seeking to transfer ownership worth 2.56 billion won. The prosecution filed the lawsuit in October 2021, claiming that the main building of the Yeonhui-dong residence appeared to be a nominee asset of former President Jeon. It took 3 years and 4 months for the court to reach a decision. Former President Jeon passed away one month after the lawsuit was filed.
The court explained, "Due to Jeon Du-hwan's death, the claim for the confiscated fines pursuant to the judgment must be considered extinguished," adding, "Debts arising from various criminal judgments are, in principle, not subject to inheritance." At the time of filing, the prosecution planned to revert ownership of the main building owned by Mrs. Lee and the garden of the private residence owned by Lee Taek-soo back to former President Jeon to enforce the confiscation. However, following Jeon's death, legal disputes arose over whether ownership could be transferred in the name of the deceased to enforce the fines.
Mrs. Lee's legal counsel argued that "there is no way to register ownership in the name of a deceased person," urging the court to dismiss the lawsuit. However, the prosecution maintained that since the lawsuit was filed before Jeon's death, there should be no legal issue. On this day, the court sided with Mrs. Lee. Previously, the Supreme Court also ruled in 2022, regarding seizure proceedings on an annex of the Yeonhui-dong residence, that "if the person subject to the judgment dies, enforcement cannot proceed unless there are special provisions."
Former President Jeon was sentenced to life imprisonment and fined 220.5 billion won by the Supreme Court in 1997 for charges including rebellion and bribery. He was later released through a special pardon. Authorities have continued efforts to recover the fines, with approximately 86.7 billion won still outstanding.
Regarding the ruling, the prosecution stated, "We will carefully review the judgment and decide whether to appeal."
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