SOUTH KOREA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jeena Kim, Kyunghwan Lee, Eunyoung Row and Bochan Kim, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC
6.5 Incentives Provided to Whistle-Blowers The ACRC Act The ACRC Act (Article 68) and the Graft Act (Article 15) contain nearly identical provisions to incentivise whistle-blowers, as follows. Compensation A reporting person can request compensation from the ACRC of up to KRW3 billion if their report leads to income recovery, increased revenue or reduced expenses for a public institution, or if it provides facts towards achieving such results. Financial reward If reporting results in significant financial benefit or prevents financial loss to a public institution, or if it otherwise promotes any public interest, the ACRC may provide a reward (or recommend a reward) to the reporting person of up to KRW500 million. Relief money The ACRC may provide relief money to reporting indi - viduals, their relatives, cohabitants or those who have assisted in related audits or investigations. This assis - tance covers various expenses or damages incurred due to the report, including: • costs for physical or mental treatment; • moving expenses related to office transfer or dis - patched service; • legal procedure expenses for litigation filed based on the report; and • compensation for wage loss during a period of disadvantageous measures. The Public Interest Whistle-Blower Protection Act Articles 26 through 29 of the Public Interest Whis - tle-Blower Protection Act also contain provisions to incentivise whistle-blowers, as follows. Compensation If the report leads to the recovery or increase of direct revenue for the State or local government, or if the legal relationship regarding it is finalised, a reward can be requested within the range of 30% of the confirmed amount (with no upper limit on the payment).
protections. If whistle-blowers, their co-operators or their relatives/household members suffer or are at risk of harm due to the public interest report, their per - sonal information may be omitted from investigation and criminal procedure records. In turn, disclosing, sharing or reporting personal information of whistle-blowers or co-operators, or any details that could reveal their identity, is strictly prohibited. Violations of these provisions may result in imprison - ment of up to five years or a fine of up to KRW50 million. Protection of personal safety Article 13 of the Public Interest Whistle-Blower Pro - tection Act states that whistle-blowers, their co- operators or their relatives/household members may request personal protection measures if there is clear evidence that they have suffered or are at significant risk of serious harm to their life or physical safety due to the public interest report. Liability reduction Articles 14 and 16 of the Public Interest Whistle-Blow - er Protection Act state that, if a whistle-blower or their co-operator is found to have committed a criminal act related to the public interest report, they may be eligible for sentence reduction or exemption. If the public interest report contains confidential information related to their duties, it is considered that the duty to maintain confidentiality under laws, collective agree - ments or employment rules has not been violated. Claims for damages by the person being reported as a result of the public interest report are prohibited. Prohibition of retaliatory actions Article 15 of the Public Interest Whistle-Blower Protec - tion Act prohibits taking retaliatory actions based on public interest reports; interference with or coercion to cancel a public interest report is also prohibited. Violations of this provision may result in imprisonment for up to five years or a fine of up to KRW50 million.
209 CHAMBERS.COM
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