Families of victims of Japanese forced labor win suit against Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ assets

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Families of victims of Japanese forced labor win suit against Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ assets

Published: 19 Feb. 2025, 19:18

LIM JEONG-WON
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A statue of victims of forced labor during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial period stands under the rain at Yongsan Square in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Sept. 12. 2024. [NEWS1]

A Seoul court sided with families of victims of forced labor during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule on Tuesday in a lawsuit seeking compensation from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ assets in Korea.

If the ruling is enforced, it will be the first case in which victims of forced labor receive reparation from a Japanese company through a compensation lawsuit.

The Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of the bereaved families in a lawsuit filed by six people, including the family of the late Jeong Chang-hee, a forced labor victim, against MH Power Systems Korea, a Korean subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

The lawsuit was filed after victims won a damages lawsuit in November 2018, when the Supreme Court confirmed a lower court’s decision ordering Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to pay 80 million won ($55,520) to each of the forced laborers involved in the case, including Jeong.

However, the victims were ultimately not compensated when the Japanese companies ignored the ruling.

In response, some bereaved families filed an additional lawsuit demanding that the Japanese companies liquidate their Korean assets to pay the compensation.

In March 2023, the Korean government proposed a third-party reimbursement plan for domestic companies to raise donations to compensate the victims.

Of the 15 victims who won in the Supreme Court in 2018, 13 accepted the third-party payment proposal and withdrew their lawsuits. However, the bereaved family of Jeong and Park Hae-ok refused, saying they would hold the Japanese company directly responsible.

The bereaved family of Jeong filed a lawsuit in March 2023, requesting the collection of the assets of MH Power Systems Korea.

The defendant in the lawsuit, MH Power Systems Korea, is a general trading company established with 100 percent investment from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Though a Korean corporation, its shareholding structure indicates it's a subsidiary of Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and most of its executives are Japanese.

Jeong's bereaved family's lawsuit aims to force MH Power Systems Korea to pay the IT-related commissions it paid Mitsubishi to the plaintiffs.

The defendants admitted having a debtor relationship with Mitsubishi but argued that they could not determine the commission's exact sum, but the court rejected this.

However, since legal procedures remain, it may take time for the bereaved family to receive the money.

The defendant will likely appeal the judgment and apply for a stay of enforcement. The defendant must deposit the corresponding amount with the court to prevent provisional execution of the judgment. Defendants may receive this money after a final verdict in the case.

If the Jeong family wins the case, it will be the second time a victim has directly received compensation from a Japanese company.

In 2014, a forced labor victim surnamed Lee won a lawsuit for damages against Hitachi Zosen. After losing the second trial, Hitachi Zosen deposited 60 million won with the court as a security deposit to prevent forced execution. The plaintiffs received the deposit after the Supreme Court’s final ruling in December 2023.

BY CHOI SEO-IN, LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]