The lawsuit filed by South Korea's Ministry of Unification against North Korea for the explosion of the Joint Liaison Office has been postponed until next month.
According to legal sources on August 11, the Seoul Central District Court's Civil Division 46 has rescheduled the verdict originally set for August 12 to September 16 at the request of the Ministry of Unification.
A Ministry official stated during a press briefing at the Government Seoul Complex, "This is the first case of its kind against the North Korean authorities, and we requested the delay to review necessary actions following the verdict." The official added that there are no plans to withdraw the lawsuit.
Previously, the Ministry of Unification filed the lawsuit in June 2023 during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to suspend the statute of limitations (three years) on the claim for damages resulting from the explosion of the liaison office, aiming to preserve state claims against North Korea. This marks the first lawsuit filed by the government against the North Korean regime, with the Republic of Korea listed as the plaintiff and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea as the defendant.
The Ministry estimates the damages to state property from the explosion at 44.7 billion won, which includes 10.25 billion won for the liaison office building and 34.45 billion won for the adjacent comprehensive support center.
While there is a general expectation that the government will win the damages lawsuit, there are currently no means to enforce compensation from North Korea even if a victory is achieved.
The liaison office building was completed in December 2007 and served as a venue for inter-Korean exchanges and talks. It was closed again in response to North Korea's backlash against the May 24 measures in 2010. In June 2020, following the failed Hanoi summit between the U.S. and North Korea the previous year, North Korea blew up the liaison office building, citing the distribution of leaflets by some defector groups as the reason.
According to legal sources on August 11, the Seoul Central District Court's Civil Division 46 has rescheduled the verdict originally set for August 12 to September 16 at the request of the Ministry of Unification.
A Ministry official stated during a press briefing at the Government Seoul Complex, "This is the first case of its kind against the North Korean authorities, and we requested the delay to review necessary actions following the verdict." The official added that there are no plans to withdraw the lawsuit.
Previously, the Ministry of Unification filed the lawsuit in June 2023 during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to suspend the statute of limitations (three years) on the claim for damages resulting from the explosion of the liaison office, aiming to preserve state claims against North Korea. This marks the first lawsuit filed by the government against the North Korean regime, with the Republic of Korea listed as the plaintiff and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea as the defendant.
The Ministry estimates the damages to state property from the explosion at 44.7 billion won, which includes 10.25 billion won for the liaison office building and 34.45 billion won for the adjacent comprehensive support center.
While there is a general expectation that the government will win the damages lawsuit, there are currently no means to enforce compensation from North Korea even if a victory is achieved.
The liaison office building was completed in December 2007 and served as a venue for inter-Korean exchanges and talks. It was closed again in response to North Korea's backlash against the May 24 measures in 2010. In June 2020, following the failed Hanoi summit between the U.S. and North Korea the previous year, North Korea blew up the liaison office building, citing the distribution of leaflets by some defector groups as the reason.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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