Government Withdraws Lawsuit Against Hwang WooSuk Over Return of 300 Million Won Presidential Award

The government has withdrawn its lawsuit against former Seoul National University professor WooSuk Hwang, which sought the return of the 300 million won presidential award prize money.

Former Seoul National University Professor WooSuk Hwang. Asia Economy DB

According to the legal community on June 16, the government submitted a notice of withdrawal to the Administrative Division 9 of the Seoul Administrative Court (Chief Judge Kim Gukhyeon), which was handling the claim for the return of the prize money from Hwang. Hwang's side also submitted a consent form, bringing the lawsuit to an end.

In 2004, Hwang gained sudden international attention after announcing research results claiming to have cultured and extracted human embryonic stem cells for the first time in the world. For this achievement, he received the "Korea Top Scientist Award," a presidential honor, along with 300 million won in prize money.

However, Hwang was dismissed from Seoul National University in 2005 after it was revealed that his research papers had been fabricated. Due to insufficient regulations at the time, the Korea Top Scientist Award he received was not revoked until October 2020.

Afterward, the Ministry of Science and ICT demanded that Hwang return the 300 million won prize money. However, Hwang refused, stating that he had donated the entire amount to the Korea Basic Science Institute (now the National Research Council of Science and Technology) immediately after receiving the award in 2004. As a result, the Ministry filed a lawsuit in March 2021.