On October 23, the 25th Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court, presided over by Judge Kwon Ki-man, ruled partially in favor of Ju Haknyeon in a damages lawsuit against a journalist identified as A. The court ordered A to pay Ju 200 million won.
The lawsuit stemmed from a report published by A in June last year concerning an alleged meeting between Ju Haknyeon and a Japanese adult video (AV) actress. At the time, A published an article suggesting that Ju had engaged in prostitution with the woman and initially denied it before admitting to it later.
Following the report, Ju’s then-agency, One Hundred, announced his departure from THE BOYZ and the termination of his exclusive contract. Ju subsequently took legal action against A, filing a damages lawsuit seeking 1 billion won.
The court determined that the key claims in the report were false. Specifically, it found that neither the allegation that Ju had engaged in prostitution nor the claim that he had subsequently admitted to it could be accepted as factual.
The judges pointed out that inferring that Ju had engaged in prostitution based solely on information the journalist claimed to have verified during the reporting process constituted a logical leap. The court also concluded that the evidence submitted by A did not establish sufficient grounds for believing the report was true.
The court found that the publication of false information had damaged Ju’s reputation and caused him considerable emotional distress. It therefore set compensation for emotional damages at 200 million won and held A financially liable.
Sources: Daum
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