Singer Lee Seung-hwan sues cartoonist Yoon Seo-in for defamation, seeking $50,000

Singer Lee Seung-hwan has initiated legal action against cartoonist Yoon Seo-in, seeking 50 million won in damages for alleged defamatory statements. Lee's legal representatives filed a complaint with the Seoul Central District Court, asserting that Yoon's remarks constituted insults and personal attacks.

The dispute arose after Lee posted a photo of his early voting ballot on Instagram, accompanied by a message expressing a desire for a safe Seoul. In response, Yoon shared Lee's post on his Facebook page and commented, "A lifelong bachelor who got divorced and is lost in political delusions. At his age, still spouting strange things. How sad."

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Lee Seung-hwan filed a complaint with the Seoul Central District Court against cartoonist Yoon Seo-in for damages for insulting expressions. The amount claimed as compensation for the illegal act of insulting expressions is 50 million won.

Lee's legal team, Law Firm Haemaaru, stated that Yoon's comments went beyond the bounds of freedom of expression. They characterized the remarks as "insulting and contemptuous personal attacks," particularly criticizing the demeaning references to Lee's private life, which were unrelated to the original post's context. The firm emphasized the significant illegality due to the public nature of Yoon's post.

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It constitutes insulting and contemptuous personal attacks that go beyond the scope of freedom of expression, and it is a belittling of private life unrelated to the overall context of the expression, and the expression itself is contemptuous.

Law Firm Haemaaru explained that Lee chose a civil lawsuit over a criminal complaint to confirm that "such clear acts of defamation are illegal." Lee believes that indiscriminate and unlimited insults are shrinking the public discourse. The lawsuit aims to establish that Yoon's actions, intended to demean, were unlawful.

Previously, Lee Seung-hwan had announced his continued support for Hwang Hee-doo's "Cyber Kraft," an organization that systematically records and manages past posts by Yoon Seo-in that have sparked controversy, including alleged disparagement of independence activists. Lee stated his intention to consider systems for proposing policies and jointly responding with victims of hate speech crimes.

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Therefore, we filed this lawsuit to confirm that acts of insult, such as Yoon Seo-in's, which have a clear purpose of belittling, are 'illegal'.