SOUTH KOREA Law and Practice Contributed by: John H Choi, Han Soon Choi, Changhun Lee and Seungjun Woo, Shin & Kim
the litigation costs the parties will actually pay. The Supreme Court rules about calculating and includ - ing attorneys’ fees in litigation costs stipulate that the lesser of the amounts calculated, based on a certain standard prepared according to the value of the liti - gation and the actual amount of attorneys’ compen - sation paid, is included in the litigation costs to be borne by the parties. In most cases, the prevailing party receives a refund that is less than the amount the party actually spent on attorneys’ fees. Collateral According to the Civil Procedure Act, if the court finds that the provision of collateral for litigation costs is necessary, as the plaintiff does not have an address, office, or a place of business in South Korea, or when it is obvious that the plaintiff’s claim is unreasonable, upon request of the defendant, the court may order the plaintiff to provide collateral for litigation costs. In the case of an Administrative Lawsuit Against the KFTC, the losing party can file a final appeal with the Supreme Court within two weeks after they receive the service of the Seoul High Court’s decision. Unlike gen - eral cases, the Seoul High Court becomes the court of first instance for an Administrative Lawsuit Against the KFTC, and thus, the Administrative Lawsuit Against the KFTC actually operates as a two-tiered court sys - tem. In order to appeal to the Supreme Court, the appellant must file a petition of final appeal with the Seoul High Court, which may or may not state the grounds for appeal. If the appellant submits the peti - tion without stating the grounds for the final appeal, the appellant must submit the grounds for appeal to the Supreme Court within 20 days from the date of receiving notice that the Supreme Court has received the record of the lawsuit from the Seoul High Court. If the appellant does not submit the grounds for appeal within that period, the Supreme Court will dismiss the final appeal. 12. Appeals 12.1 Basis of Appeal Administrative Lawsuit Against the KFTC Since the Supreme Court operates as a court that addresses questions of law, grounds for appeal that
can be claimed are limited, in principle, to grounds that the judgment of the Seoul High Court is incorrect from a legal perspective. A statement that the Seoul High Court has incorrectly admitted the facts cannot be provided as grounds for appeal. The Supreme Court will dismiss the final appeal if it determines that the grounds for appeal cannot be admitted. If it determines that the grounds for appeal can be admitted, the Supreme Court will reverse the ruling of the Seoul High Court and, in principle, remand the case to the Seoul High Court to reconsider the case. Antitrust Damages Lawsuit In the case of an Antitrust Damages Lawsuit, the dis - trict court becomes the court of first instance, and the party that loses in the first instance trial can appeal by filing a petition of appeal with the court of first instance, while the party that loses in the appeal can file a petition of final appeal with the Court of Appeal. A petition of appeal and final appeal must be filed within two weeks from receiving the original copy of the decision from the court. However, even where a petition of appeal is filed with the court, an appellant who had failed to state the grounds for the appeal in the petition of appeal must submit a brief stating the grounds for appeal within 40 days (with a one-time opportunity to request a one- month extension) of receiving the notice of receipt of the record of appeal. If the brief stating the grounds for appeal is not submitted within this period, the appel - late court must dismiss the appeal. The Court of Appeal will dismiss the appeal if it decides that the judgment of the first instance court is valid. If it decides that the judgment of the first instance court is wrong, it will reverse the judgment and rule on the case on its own. Appeals to the Supreme Court are governed by sepa - rate rules. If the petition of final appeal does not state the grounds for appeal, the appellant must file a state - ment of grounds within 20 days after receiving notice that the Supreme Court has received the record. A final appeal generally lies only on questions of law.
167 A NTITRUST LI T IGATI O N 2026
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