Hit with a Heavy Fine After Attacking Colleague in Group Chat Over "Tardiness, Theft, and Lack of Skill" [Court Case]

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[Financial News]"It is already outrageous that she steals or shows up late and then shifts the blame onto other interpreters. On top of that, if she ruined a major corporation’s presentation in front of the Ambassador of France to the Republic of Korea because of her lack of skill and caused several agencies to lose work, shouldn’t she at least show some remorse? Recommending someone like that here and there without proper vetting is by no means an act of goodwill or kindness."On May 3, 2023, a message like this was posted in an information-sharing chat room that included roughly 80 to 100 interpreters. The accompanying photo had the face of interpreter Lee covered, but her name tag was visible, making it clear who the post was referring to.
The person who wrote the post was a fellow industry worker and model, a 40-year-old identified by the surname Kim, who was also operating the chat room. The message claimed that the victim stole items or was late and then shifted responsibility to other interpreters, and that she had failed while handling a major corporation’s presentation in front of the Ambassador of France to the Republic of Korea. Investigators later found these claims to be untrue.
Kim ultimately ended up in court. The Seoul Eastern District Court’s Criminal Division 12 Single-Judge Bench, presided over by Judge Kwak Yoon-kyung, sentenced Kim to a fine on charges of defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection.
The court concluded that by posting false information in a group chat with many participants, Kim had spread content capable of undermining the victim’s social reputation.
During the trial, Kim argued that she had written the post based on multiple reports and requests from others and claimed her purpose was to protect the public interest by preventing unverified interpreters from being recommended. The court rejected this argument.
The bench stated, "The defendant posted the message without conducting sufficient verification to determine whether the statements were true, and it is difficult to see this method as the only way to serve the public interest," adding, "At the very least, she had a recognizably negligent awareness that the statements were false and acted with the purpose of defamation."
The court went on to say, "Even if the defendant is a first-time offender with no prior criminal record, considering the degree of defamation, the method of infringement, and the content of the post, the fine cannot be viewed as excessive." After sentencing, Kim was ordered to pay a fine of 6 million won.
yesji@fnnews.com Kim Ye-ji Reporter