Assistance With an Interference With Business Case | Non-Referral for Interference With Business and Related Charges Arising From a Refund Review of an English Kindergarten

When the client enrolled two children in an English kindergarten, the client paid six months' worth of tuition in a lump sum.

During the fourth month, for personal reasons the client decided to withdraw both children and requested a refund for the remaining two months.

However, the refund amount had been calculated incorrectly.

As a parent, the client naturally had questions about this, and after several inquiries the client still did not receive a clear explanation, and ultimately shared the relevant matter on a parents' online community (mom cafe).

However, the post was a review based on objective facts and the client's own experience, written for the purpose of sharing information among parents.

Nevertheless, the academy filed a criminal complaint for defamation and for interference with business through the dissemination of false facts, and the client came to our firm while facing a police investigation.

At the initial consultation stage, the criminal attorney closely examined what the client's mom cafe post had actually contained, whether it stated false facts, and whether there had been any intent to defame.

The attorney also analyzed the main thrust of the complaint and confirmed that the issues were whether false facts had been disseminated, whether there was intent, and whether there was a purpose to defame.

In order to concretely prove what the client had actually experienced during the refund process, the criminal attorney submitted the following materials.

These served as important grounds proving that the client's post constituted a review based on objective facts and experience.

The criminal attorney argued that the mom cafe post was not mere defamation, but had been written for the following purposes.

This was, in legal terms, a strategy of denying the “purpose to defame” and emphasizing the public-interest nature of providing information.

The criminal attorney emphasized that the post did not contain false facts, that it did not specify the name of the complainant's academy, and that it amounted to no more than a personal review and an expression of opinion.

In addition, through a legal explanation that the alleged facts themselves did not satisfy the elements of the charge and the presentation of precedents, the attorney persuasively argued that the suspect's conduct was not subject to punishment.

Supreme Court Decision 2021Do6634, decided September 30, 2021

Interference with business is established where, for the purpose of interfering with another person's legitimate business, a person disseminates false facts, or impedes the performance of business by deceit or force (Article 314 of the Criminal Act).

In particular, “interference with business through the dissemination of false facts” arising from online posts, reviews, and mom cafe posts is frequently at issue, and recently it has become a common type of dispute among those engaged in service industries, such as academies, hospitals, and small business owners.

The problem is that the boundary between “false facts” and “expression of opinion” is highly ambiguous.

Accordingly, the investigative authorities comprehensively consider the overall context of the post, the social circumstances, and the manner of expression in order to determine the following.

Level of Punishment for Interference With Business

By contrast, defamation under the Network Act (Information and Communications Network Act) may be established where the content, whether it states a fact or a false fact, has the potential to lower a specific person's social reputation.

Elements of Defamation

At this point, the level of punishment varies depending on whether the disclosed fact is false.

Level of Punishment for Defamation

If you have been unfairly made the subject of a criminal complaint as described above, it is most important to set out in concrete terms the background to the case, the circumstances at the time, and the context of the statements.

Legal analysis must be carried out together with securing evidence and establishing a response strategy in order to avoid unfair punishment.

After the consultation, Daeryun Law Firm assigns an attorney specializing in the relevant type of case and, through a systematic response, including organizing the client's statements, securing relevant evidence, submitting a defense counsel's written opinion, and accompanying the client to the police investigation, blocks unfavorable misunderstandings in advance.

In addition, depending on the nature of the case, where necessary the firm collaborates with experts in specialized fields, such as evidence examination and psychological counseling, to reduce the client's burden.

If you are confused after being unfairly made the subject of a criminal complaint, we recommend that you obtain legal assistance by booking 🔗a legal consultation appointment.

Daeryun, the ninth-largest law firm in Korea (based on 2025 National Tax Service value-added tax filings), helps resolve cases through the systematic strategies of legal experts across many fields.