Court Excludes 30 Billion Won from Roh Tae-woo's Alleged Slush Fund in Chey Tae-won Divorce Case

In a significant development in the high-profile divorce case between SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Roh Soh-yeong, the Seoul High Court has ruled that 30 billion won (approximately $21.7 million USD) from the alleged slush fund of former President Roh Tae-woo will be excluded from the property division calculation. This decision impacts the final settlement amount Chey must pay to Roh.

The Seoul High Court's Family Division, presided over by Judge Lee Sang-ju, announced the ruling on the retrial of the property division on June 24. The court ordered Chey Tae-won to pay Roh Soh-yeong 944 billion won (approximately $683 million USD) in total property division.

Crucially, the court stated, "In accordance with the Supreme Court's remand ruling, the 30 billion won in support from Roh Tae-woo will not be considered in the calculation of Roh Soh-yeong's contribution to the formation or value maintenance of Chey Tae-won's shares, nor in the determination of the property division ratio."

The couple married in September 1988. Chey revealed he had an extramarital child in 2015 and initiated divorce proceedings in 2017, which failed. Roh Soh-yeong filed a counterclaim in December 2019. The first trial in 2022 ordered Chey to pay 100 million won in alimony and 66.5 billion won in property division. A second trial in May 2024 significantly increased the alimony to 2 billion won and the property division to 1.38 trillion won.

However, the Supreme Court in October last year partially overturned the appellate court's decision regarding the property division. The Supreme Court ruled that the 30 billion won, claimed by Roh's side to have flowed into SK, was illicit funds and thus not subject to property division. The case was sent back to the Seoul High Court for a retrial on the property division aspect, while the 2 billion won alimony award was finalized.

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In accordance with the Supreme Court's remand ruling, the 30 billion won in support from Roh Tae-woo will not be considered in the calculation of Roh Soh-yeong's contribution to the formation or value maintenance of Chey Tae-won's shares, nor in the determination of the property division ratio.