SOUTH KOREA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jin Yeong Chung, Inhak Lee and Seung Hyeon Lee, Kim & Chang
generally take one year in average. This timeline may differ depending on the subject matter and nature of each case.
If information involving privacy or trade secrets is stated in a document, the relevant party may ask the court to limit the access to such document by sub- mitting an application regarding the confidentiality of the document. 8.3 Enforcement of Settlement Agreements Once a settlement is made and is recorded by the court in the protocol, the protocol holds the same sta- tus as a final and conclusive court judgment. There- fore, the settlement is fully enforceable. 8.4 Setting Aside Settlement Agreements Since a settlement protocol has the same effect as a final and conclusive judgment, unless there is a statu- tory ground for a retrial, such settlement protocol can- not be revoked or set aside. 9. Damages and Judgment 9.1 Awards Available to the Successful Litigant There are three types of dispositive sections that a Korean court can issue: • a judgment ordering performance of obligations; • a declaratory judgment (ascertaining rights or obli- gations of a party); and • a judgment forming or creating legal relationships. 9.2 Rules Regarding Damages Courts may make rulings for the payment of pecuni- ary damages, for both economic and non-economic damages. Some sector-specific statues include the following. • Punitive damages are generally not allowed under Korean law. However, as an exception to this prin- ciple, there are statutes under which punitive dam- ages may be recovered, such as the Subcontract Act (three to five times the amount of actual dam- ages) and the Personal Information Protection Act (up to five times the amount of actual damages). • The Products Liability Act provides for compensa- tion of damages up to three times the amount of actual damages/losses in cases where the manu- facturer knew of the defect in its product but failed
8. Settlement 8.1 Court Approval
In Korea, both out-of-court and in-court settlements are available. The settlement made out of court does not require an approval from the court. The parties may settle a case at any time during the course of a civil proceeding by making mutual con- cessions. As in the case for out-of-court settlements, the parties do not need to obtain an approval from the court in order to enter into a settlement agreement. If the parties have successfully settled the case, the result of the settlement will be officially recorded in the court protocol, thereby having the effect of a final judg- ment so long as the parties do not withdraw from the case immediately upon reaching a settlement. Hence, such settlement protocol has an equivalent effect to a final judgment and, thus, is fully enforceable. Furthermore, during the course of a civil action, the judge may recommend a settlement and act as a mediator. If the parties do not reach a settlement dur- ing such mediation, then the court may issue a recom- mendation order for settlement. Unless any party files an objection to the court’s settlement recommenda- tion order within two weeks from the date of the ser - vice of such order, the objection is time-barred and the settlement recommendation order shall have the same effect as a final and conclusive judgment. If, however, an objection is raised by either of the parties to the settlement recommendation ordered by the court, the proceeding will return to its status prior to the order. 8.2 Settlement of Lawsuits and Confidentiality The terms of an in-court settlement will be recorded in the hearing protocol. The pleadings and other docu- ments from the case records are usually not available to the public, but the parties to the case, or others who can prove that they have a legitimate interest in the case, are allowed access to these records.
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