Please Stop Secondhand Smoke... Dismissing Pregnant Neighbor Ends in Court Ruling

A woman in her 50s who tormented a pregnant neighbor by smoking inside her apartment and on her balcony has been ordered by a court to pay damages.

According to the Korea Legal Aid Corporation today (July 22), Judge Kim Young-hee of Civil Division 3 at the Jeonju District Court ruled in a damages lawsuit filed by resident A against neighbor B, ordering the defendant to pay 1.5 million won in compensation to the plaintiffs.

In May of last year, A was living in a corridor-style apartment with his wife, who was expecting a child.

B, who lived next door, smoked inside her apartment and on the balcony, and the smoke drifted into A's home.

Although A repeatedly requested through the management office that B refrain from smoking, B ignored the requests and continued to smoke.

Consequently, A and his wife suffered from secondhand smoke and stress to the point of requiring medical treatment, prompting them to seek help from the Corporation.

Representing A and his wife, the Corporation filed a damages lawsuit against B.

The Corporation objectively proved the damages caused by secondhand smoke by citing violations of the obligation to prevent secondhand smoke and cooperate with management recommendations under the Apartment Housing Management Act.

Emphasizing that secondhand smoke poses a greater risk to a fetus's health and causes higher mental distress for pregnant women than for the general public, the Corporation claimed a higher amount of compensation for A's wife.

Accepting the Corporation's argument, Judge Kim ruled that the defendant's actions constituted an illegal act that violated the plaintiffs' right to health and peaceful residential life, ordering the defendant to pay 500,000 won to A and 1 million won to A's pregnant wife.

Hwang Ho-sung, head of the Jeonju branch of the Corporation, stated, "This ruling confirms that the issue of secondhand smoke is not merely a daily inconvenience or a neighborhood conflict, but an illegal act that can incur civil liability for damages," adding, "We expect this to serve as a benchmark for resolving similar disputes in the future."

(File Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.