"I'll Pay with Both Shares and Cash" vs "Cash Only"... Why Chey Taewon Filed a Further Appeal After Careful Deliberation

Proposed Payment Partly in Shares, But Noh Soyoung's Side Refused
... 130 Million Won in Daily Interest If Ruling Is Finalized

It has been reported that the reason Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group refused to accept the appellate court's decision to pay Noh So-young, Director of Art Center Nabi, 944 billion won in cash as part of the divorce property division was due to differences in their positions regarding the payment method.

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group (left) and Noh So-young, Director of Art Center Nabi. Photo by Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News on August 16, it is said that Chairman Chey's side initially considered accepting the appellate court ruling delivered on July 24 as it was, with the intention of ending the legal dispute that has lasted for over nine years. However, in the course of trying to secure 944 billion won in cash within the roughly three weeks leading up to the deadline for further appeal on August 14, they encountered difficulties. Chairman Chey reportedly even considered selling off a portion of his SK shares, but was concerned about the significant impact that disposing of a large number of shares in a short time could have on both the share price and the group’s governance structure.

Chairman Chey's representatives proposed a plan to Director Noh's side to pay the property settlement with a mix of cash and shares. However, Director Noh's side stated they would only accept the full amount in cash, in line with the exact terms of the appellate court order. It is known that this proposal included a condition in which Chey's side would compensate for any difference if the share price fell, but would not demand extra payment even if the share price increased.

If Director Noh's side did not accept the proposal, Chairman Chey's side would be required to pay annual late interest at a rate of 5% starting from the day after the ruling was finalized. By filing a further appeal, they effectively bought more time to explore realistic cash payment options while avoiding immediate interest charges. Chairman Chey’s legal team released a statement at 11:59 p.m. on August 14, just one minute before the appeal deadline, to make this known. The late interest amounts to 47.2 billion won a year, or about 130 million won per day.

In the further appeal, it is expected that Chairman Chey’s side will argue that there was a legal misunderstanding in calculating the asset division ratio and amount in the appellate court ruling. The appellate court set the valuation date for SK shares owned by Chey at April 16, 2024, which was the final day of arguments in the divorce case at the appellate court (fact-finding trial). Although Director Noh's argument that the valuation date should be June 26, the day her side concluded its arguments in the appellate court, was not accepted, the court did reflect the fact that between those two dates, SK's share price jumped more than fivefold—from 160,000 won to 858,000 won—when deciding the asset division ratio. This was based on the recognition that Director Noh had contributed in part to SK Group's growth and increased corporate value.

Therefore, it is expected that Chairman Chey’s side will argue that it is contradictory to reflect SK's share price changes occurring after the valuation date in determining the division ratio. They are also likely to emphasize that SK's share price has recently fallen more than 30%, to the 500,000 won range, compared with the date the appellate court concluded its hearings.

Meanwhile, it is difficult to predict how long the Supreme Court’s review of the appeal will take. It could take several months or more. However, legal experts believe there is little possibility that the outcome will be overturned during the final appeal.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.