Korea Plaintiff Takes Japan Firm’s Court Deposit

Jiji Press

17:45 JST, February 20, 2024

SEOUL (Jiji Press) — A South Korean plaintiff has received funds deposited to a South Korean court by Japan’s Hitachi Zosen Corp. in a wartime labor lawsuit, the plaintiff’s side said Tuesday. It was the first time that a South Korean plaintiff has received funds from a Japanese company in a wartime labor suit.

The development came after a South Korean Supreme Court ruling ordering Hitachi Zosen to pay compensation was finalized in December last year.

The Japanese heavy machinery maker deposited 60 million won with a court in 2019 after a high court ruled against the company.

In hopes to prevent its assets in South Korea from being forcibly seized.

The Japanese government takes the position that the issue of wartime labor was settled by the 1965 Japan-South Korea agreement on property and claims.

The Japanese heavy machinery maker deposited 60 million won with a court in 2019 after a high court ruled against the company, in hopes to prevent its assets in South Korea from being forcibly seized.

After winning the lawsuit at the Supreme Court, the plaintiff last month applied to receive the deposit.