SEOUL: South Korea’s Supreme Court partially overturned on Thursday a previous ruling on SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won’s divorce and division of property after the businessman had contested an order for him to pay the country’s largest divorce settlement.
Last year, the Seoul High Court had ruled that Chey must pay around $1 billion to his estranged wife Roh So-yeong as part of their planned divorce.
The decision overturned the appeals court’s ruling ordering Chey to pay 1.38 trillion won ($972.50 million) to his estranged wife as part of their divorce settlement.
SK Group is South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate with 363 trillion won in assets as of 2025 according to Korea Fair Trade Commission data, with affiliates such as chipmaker SK Hynix.
In 2024, the Seoul High Court said Chey’s shares in holding company SK Inc should be counted as part of the couple’s joint property, ordering Chey to pay 1.38 trillion won in cash and 2 billion won in alimony to Roh, the daughter of former South Korean President Roh Tae-woo.
The decision had overturned a 2022 ruling by a lower court for a much smaller amount.
SK Inc shares fell 5.4% after the ruling.
($1 = 1,419.0200 won) – Reuters
