[Anchor]

In the remand retrial of the property division lawsuit between SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Art Center Nabi Director Roh Soh-yeong, the court has ordered Chairman Chey to pay 944 billion won to Director Roh. The court ruled that SK shares owned by Chairman Chey are subject to division, recognizing one-third of the total joint property as Director Roh's share.

First, we have a report from Reporter Jang Hun-gyeong.

[Reporter]

Chairman Chey Tae-won and Art Center Nabi Director Roh Soh-yeong, whose 1988 marriage between the eldest son of a conglomerate family and the daughter of the sitting president drew massive attention.

The so-called "trial of the century" divorce lawsuit, which began in 2017 after Chairman Chey abruptly revealed his out-of-wedlock child in 2015, has concluded after nine years.

The Seoul High Court ordered Chairman Chey to pay 944 billion won to Director Roh in the remand retrial of their divorce and property division lawsuit.

Although the divided amount decreased by about 400 billion won from the 1.3808 trillion won determined in the second trial prior to the Supreme Court remand, the court recognized SK shares held by Chairman Chey as subject to division.

The court did not accept Chairman Chey's argument that SK shares are separate property inherited from the late former chairman and thus not subject to division.

The court explained, "During the marriage, the value of the shares increased significantly due to Chairman Chey's management activities, and Director Roh contributed through housekeeping, childcare, and external activities related to the SK group."

However, the court did not accept Director Roh's argument that the valuation date for the shares subject to division should be the closing date of arguments in the remand retrial, instead determining it to be April 2024, which was the closing date of arguments in the previous appellate trial.

The court explained that although "SK stock prices rose sharply" after the closing of arguments in the previous appellate trial, "it cannot be said that Chairman Chey's contributions had no effect."

Previously, the first-instance court in 2022 ordered Chairman Chey to pay Director Roh 66.5 billion won in property division and 100 million won in alimony. However, the second-instance court two years later significantly increased the property division to 1.3808 trillion won and alimony to 2 billion won.

In October of last year, the Supreme Court finalized the portions regarding the divorce and alimony while ordering a remand to recalculate the property division amount, excluding funds such as the alleged slush fund of former President Roh Tae-woo.

(Video Editing: Lee Sang-min)