In a rulling announced today, the Seoul High Court said it will honor an earlier ruling, which said that Samsung Electronics Co Chairman Lee Kun Hee will keep all wealth inherited from his father. An appeal to reject the ruling of the Seoul Central District Court last year was made by the Samsung Chairman's brother, Lee Maeng Hee, Bloomberg said in its report.
The family members of Lee reportedly claimed entitlement to a KRW4.1 trillion or $3.8 billion stake in Samsung Life Insurance Co and Samsung Electronics. Bloomberg said the Seoul High Court rejected the claims of Lee's other family members as they have failed to provide proof to own the stake in question. The elder Lee is now left with one remaining option, which is an appeal with the supreme court, to fight for the disputed stake in perhaps one of the most profitable companies in the world.
According to his lawyer Cha Dong Eon, Lee Maeng Hee has yet to decide whether he, on behalf of himself and four other family members, will be applying for another appeal. Meanwhile, Chairman Lee's lawyer, Yun Jae Yun, said that they are pleased with the outcome of the High Court ruling and that it was a reasonable judgement. When asked by Bloomberg regarding the latest development of the stake claim against Chairman Lee, Samsung Group said it has no comment.
Bloomberg said the Lee Maeng Hee had dropped some of its claims on January 14 but have been seeking KRW940 billion worth of shares in the Samsung companies, while the other relatives decided to drop their claims. The news outlet said that the family members of Chairman Lee, which include his brother and Lee Sook Hee, his sister, started their legal claims in February two years ago.
The dispute stemmed from the absence of a will by the siblings' patriarch, Lee Byung Chull, who died in 1987. The success of the largest business group in South Korea has been credited to Chairman Lee's leadership to steer it from a dried-fish exporter in 1938, Bloomberg said. The company at this point is worth $171 billion in market value.
