The government decided not to appeal the case in which it lost a lawsuit seeking to annul the arbitration award in an international investment dispute (ISDS) requiring it to compensate the U.S. private equity firm Mason with $32 million (approximately 43.8 billion KRW) for damages caused by the merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries.
On the 18th, the Ministry of Justice announced, "After several in-depth discussions with the government’s legal representatives and external experts, the government has decided not to file an appeal against the first-instance ruling by the Singapore International Commercial Court on March 20, 2025, which dismissed the government’s request to annul the Mason ISDS arbitration award." Accordingly, the government must pay Mason 86 billion KRW including delayed interest.
Mason was a former shareholder of Samsung C&T. Around September 2018, Mason filed an ISDS claim, arguing that the government pressured the National Pension Service to vote in favor of the Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries merger, resulting in losses of about $200 million due to a drop in stock prices.
In April last year, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) arbitration tribunal partially accepted Mason’s claims and ruled that the Korean government must pay $32 million (approximately 43.8 billion KRW) plus delayed interest (5% compound interest annually from July 17, 2015). The principal compensation amount is about 16% of the $200 million claimed by Mason.
In response, the Korean government filed a lawsuit to annul the arbitration award at the Singapore court, the seat of arbitration, on July 11 last year. However, on the 20th of last month, the Singapore International Commercial Court dismissed the Korean government’s claims and upheld the original arbitration award.
With the government’s decision to forgo an appeal, the compensation plan is expected to be finalized as is. The Ministry of Justice stated, "This decision was made after considering not only legal grounds but also additional costs and delayed interest that would arise from filing an appeal," and added, "We will continue to prioritize national interests in our responses going forward."
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