Administrative Injunction Filed to Suspend Enforcement of Disciplinary Action Related to Hwajeong Collapse
Second Appeal for Injunction on Hakdong Incident Accepted in Appellate Court
HDC Hyundai Development Company has initiated legal action in response to a one-year business suspension imposed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in connection with the Gwangju Hwajeong I-Park collapse incident.
According to industry sources on May 21, HDC Hyundai Development Company filed for an injunction to suspend the enforcement of the business suspension order and also filed an administrative lawsuit to cancel the disposition with the Seoul Administrative Court on May 20.
On May 14, the Seoul Metropolitan Government imposed an eight-month business suspension on HDC Hyundai Development Company, from June 9 of this year to February 8 of next year, citing "major damage or casualties caused by poor construction due to intentional or gross negligence" in relation to the Hwajeong I-Park collapse incident. The city also imposed an additional four-month business suspension, from February 9 to June 8 of next year, citing "the occurrence of a serious industrial accident under the Occupational Safety and Health Act."
On January 11, 2022, a structure collapsed at the Hwajeong-dong I-Park construction site in Seo-gu, Gwangju, resulting in the deaths of six workers and injuries to one. As a result of this incident, 20 individuals, including three corporations?HDC Hyundai Development Company as the main contractor, a subcontractor, and a supervisory company?were indicted. In the first trial in January of this year, the site manager of HDC Hyundai Development Company was sentenced to four years in prison, and the company itself was fined 500 million won.
On the same day, regarding the Seoul Metropolitan Government's eight-month business suspension administrative order related to the Gwangju Hakdong demolition site collapse, HDC Hyundai Development Company received a favorable decision from the Seoul High Court to stay the execution of the order.
HDC Hyundai Development Company explained, "We appealed the first-instance ruling on the administrative disposition related to the Hakdong accident and filed for a provisional disposition to suspend its effect, which was granted."
The Seoul High Court decided to suspend the effect of the administrative disposition until 30 days after the date of the ruling in the appeal trial for the business suspension cancellation lawsuit.
The court explained, "There is an urgent need to suspend the effect of the disposition to prevent irreparable harm to the applicant resulting from the execution of the order, and it is insufficient to recognize that the suspension would have a significant impact on public welfare."
On April 21, the Seoul Administrative Court ruled against HDC Hyundai Development Company in the first trial of the lawsuit seeking to cancel the business suspension order.
In June 2021, a building collapsed during construction in Redevelopment Zone 4 of Hakdong, Gwangju, resulting in the deaths of nine citizens. In response, the Seoul Metropolitan Government imposed two separate eight-month business suspension orders on HDC Hyundai Development Company in March 2022, citing poor construction and violations of subcontractor management obligations.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
