Final Ruling to Be Delivered Four Years and Ten Months After Trial Began
The Supreme Court will deliver its final ruling on July 17 regarding allegations of unfair merger and accounting fraud involving Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong. Both the first and second trials previously found him not guilty.
According to the legal community on the 27th, the Supreme Court's Third Division (presiding justice: Oh Seokjun) has scheduled the sentencing of Lee's appeal case for 11:15 a.m. on July 17. This comes four years and ten months after Lee was brought to trial, and about five months after the second trial verdict.
Lee was indicted in September 2020 on charges of being involved in unfair trading, stock price manipulation, and accounting fraud orchestrated by Samsung's Future Strategy Office during the 2015 merger between Cheil Industries and Samsung C&T. The prosecution alleged that these actions were aimed at securing a stable succession of management rights for Lee at minimal cost and strengthening his control over the group.
In February last year, the first trial acquitted Lee of all 19 charges. On February 3 of this year, the Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 13 (presiding judge: Baek Kangjin), which handled the appeal, also found Lee not guilty on all counts. Thirteen other defendants who were indicted alongside Lee?including Choi Jisung, former head of Samsung Group's Future Strategy Office; Kim Jongjoong, former head of the office's strategy team; and Jang Choonggi, former deputy head?were also acquitted in both the first and second trials.
The court did not accept the prosecution's claims regarding unfair trading, which alleged that there had been report manipulation, the establishment of illicit plans to ensure the merger, and the exertion of undue influence throughout the process from board resolutions, merger contracts, and shareholder meetings to post-merger stock price management.
Regarding the accounting fraud charges, the court found that the company's handling of its financial statements could not be conclusively deemed to have exceeded its discretion. The court also rejected the prosecution's assertion that the company had misled external parties or disguised the fact that there was no change in control. In response, the prosecution convened a Criminal Appeals Review Committee on February 7 and appealed the second trial's verdict for Lee.
The prosecution explained, "There are differences of opinion with the prosecution regarding the purpose and circumstances of the group's control succession through the Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries merger, as well as the legal judgments on accounting fraud and unfair trading. The first and second trials also reached different conclusions on key issues."
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