Seoul: SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and his former wife, Roh Soh-yeong, have failed to reach an agreement in a court mediation session concerning the division of their assets, leading the high-profile divorce settlement case to return to trial proceedings.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the pair entered mediation for asset division after the Supreme Court remanded the case to the Seoul High Court last October, while confirming the divorce. A key point of contention remains whether Chey's SK Inc. stocks should be included in the division. The Seoul High Court has now decided to end mediation and proceed with oral arguments scheduled for June 26, as both parties were unable to bridge their differences.
Chey and Roh were both present for their second mediation session earlier in the day, marking their first court appearance together since April 2024. Chey's legal team contends that the stocks should not be part of the asset division, asserting that they were either inherited or gifted. Conversely, Roh's side insists that the stocks constitute marital property.
In May 2024, the Seoul High Court had ordered Chey to pay approximately 1.38 trillion won (US$913 million) to Roh as part of the asset division, a decision that acknowledged a purported slush fund of 30 billion won allegedly funneled by Roh's father to Chey's father. However, the Supreme Court later ruled that the alleged fund could not be considered in the asset division due to its questionable legality.
Chey currently holds a 17.9 percent stake in SK Inc., with shares trading above 600,000 won each, a significant increase from the 160,000 won per share price on April 16, 2024, when the initial oral arguments concluded at the Seoul High Court. The case has its roots in 2015, when Chey announced his plans for divorce, admitting to an extramarital affair and a child from that relationship. Chey and Roh, who wed in 1988, share three children.