Courts have successively ruled that if a tenant fails to get their deposit back due to jeonse fraud, the licensed real estate agent who brokered the contract must also compensate for damages resulting from failing to properly check and explain the property's rights relationship.

The courts held real estate agents who provided false information about senior lease deposits and other details up to 60 percent liable for the deposit damage amount, and held agents who failed to properly verify forged trust property lease consent forms 70 percent liable.

The Seoul Central District Court ruled partly in favor of the plaintiffs in two separate damages lawsuits filed by jeonse fraud victim tenants against real estate agents, real estate brokerage corporations, and the Korea Association of Realtors.

In one of these cases concerning a multi-family house in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, a tenant paid a deposit of 180 million won and signed a lease agreement.

However, the real estate agent provided false information regarding important details such as the building value and senior lease deposits. Although an auction was later held for the house, the tenant received no dividend at all.

While the first instance court limited the real estate agent's liability to 40 percent and ordered them to pay 72 million won, the second instance court raised the liability ratio to 60 percent.

Consequently, the first instance ruling was overturned, and the real estate agent side was ordered to compensate 108 million won.

In another case, a tenant paid a deposit of 120 million won to sign a lease agreement for a tourist hotel building in Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul.

The building was registered under an asset trust company, meaning the actual owner (the trustee) and the lessor were different.

When leasing trust property, the tenant can secure the right to oppose third parties only with the trustee's permission or consent, but the documents concerning the trustee's consent to the lease used at the time were forged.

However, the real estate agent provided the forged documents to the tenant as they were without verifying their authenticity, ultimately causing the tenant damages equivalent to the 120 million won deposit.

The first instance court found the real estate agent side 70 percent liable and ruled that they must pay 84 million won.

Reported by Jung Da-eun | Video by Seo Byeong-wook | Design by Yang Hye-min | Produced by SBS Digital News