Supreme Court eases control risk for SK chairman in divorce ruling

A Supreme Court decision Thursday to send back a lower court ruling on SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won’s divorce from his estranged wife, Roh Soh-yeong, for recalculation of the settlement amount has partially eased uncertainty over his control of Korea’s second-largest conglomerate. The top court's decision overturned a key reason behind the Seoul High Court’s May ruling that favored Roh. The lower court had accepted her claim that her father, former President Roh Tae-woo, had supported SK Group through an illegal slush fund worth 30 billion won ($22 million), thereby recognizing her contribution to the couple’s marital assets and ordering Chey to pay her 1.38 trillion won ($970 million). The Supreme Court ruled that the former president’s actions — even if proven — cannot be legally recognized, and that the money cannot be considered Roh's contribution when determining the division of assets. Given this, the high court is expected to take a closer look at the alleged slush fund and recalculate the couple’s marital property. The Chey-Roh divorce saga is one of the most hWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times