SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, left, and his estranged wife Roh Soh-yeong, speak to the press while attending a hearing on their ongoing divorce settlement at the Seoul High Court, April 16. Yonhap
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won will be able to breathe a sigh of relief after the Supreme Court’s decision to review a lower court’s order requiring him to pay an astronomical amount of money to his estranged wife, Roh Soh-yeong, in their property division settlement, experts and industry officials said Sunday.
On Friday, the top court opted not to dismiss a hearing on the case apparently due to lingering controversies, after an appellate court acknowledged what SK described as a “critical error” in assessing Roh’s contribution to the growth of the group.
The Seoul High Court had upheld its earlier ruling that Chey should pay her 1.38 trillion won ($986 million) in property division. The figure is the largest-ever divorce settlement here and a 20-fold increase from 66.5 billion won in the first trial.
Legal experts and officials from major conglomerates said the case seems to have been brought back to square one after the Supreme Court’s decision.
