Court Fines Former Soongsil University President 10 Million Won for Using University Funds for Personal Lawsuit Expenses

National Human Rights Commission Recommended "Restoration of Student Rights"
Legal Fees for Lawsuit to Overturn Recommendation Paid from University Funds

Former Soongsil University President, referred to as Mr. A, who received a corrective recommendation from the National Human Rights Commission of Korea for violating a student's right to personality, was issued a summary order to pay a fine for using university funds to cover related litigation expenses.

According to the legal community on January 23, Judge Lee Younglim of the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 8 issued a summary order on January 9, imposing a fine of 10 million won on the former president, Mr. A, who was summarily indicted on charges of occupational embezzlement. A summary order is a judicial decision in a criminal case where a fine or similar penalty is imposed through a written procedure without a formal trial.

In 2021, during his tenure as president, Mr. A compared the editor-in-chief of the university newspaper to Cho Joo-bin, a known distributor of sexually exploitative materials, and was found by the Human Rights Commission to have violated the student's right to personality. The commission recommended that Mr. A take appropriate action. However, Mr. A did not accept this recommendation and filed a lawsuit against the commission seeking to overturn it. During this process, it was found that he paid attorney fees using university funds. In December of last year, the prosecution summarily indicted Mr. A, seeking a fine of 10 million won.