SK chief, partner ordered to pay W2b to estranged wife

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won (left) and Roh Soh-yeong (Newsis)

A Seoul court on Thursday ordered SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and his live-in partner to pay 2 billion won ($1.50 million) in alimony to his estranged wife and the director of Art Center Nabi, Roh Soh-yeong.

The Seoul Family Court ordered in a lawsuit seeking damage, filed by Roh against Chey’s partner Kim Hee-young, who is serving as the chair of T&C Foundation, that the defendant should jointly pay 2 billion won to the plaintiff along with the SK chief.

“Based on the submitted evidence, it is acknowledged that the misconduct of the defendant and Chey, including childbirth out of wedlock and public behavior, damaged the fundamental trust between Roh and Chey, leading to the breakdown of their marriage,” the court said.

Roh filed a lawsuit in March last year, claiming that Kim caused the breakdown of her marriage with Chey, leading to extreme mental distress and demanded 3 billion won in alimony.

However, Kim’s side argued that Roh filed the lawsuit to gain an advantage in the divorce proceedings, asserting that the marriage had already been broken for decades.

Previously, in a divorce suit between Chey and Roh, the appellate court acknowledged Chey’s role in the marriage breakdown and ordered him to pay 2 billion won in alimony to Roh.

Furthermore, a division of assets totaling 1.38 trillion won, the largest on record, was ordered, and the case is currently under appeal.

By Jie Ye-eun(yeeun@heraldcorp.com)