Case Handled Through a Gwangju Attorney Consultation | Through a Gwangju Attorney Consultation, Successfully Obtaining a Grant of 70% of a Corporate Client's Reimbursement Claim

The circumstances at the time the client sought Daeryun's assistance are as follows.

A customer who visited Company C, of which the client is the representative, mistook the company's emergency-exit steel door for a restroom door, opened it, walked out, and fell from the building to the ground.

Because it was a low floor, the customer did not suffer serious harm, but a claim for damages was filed, and the client came to pay approximately 14 million won.

Accordingly, the client believed that the company that had concluded the fire-safety facility construction contract at the time of the company's facility work bore liability for defects in the installation and maintenance of the fall-prevention facilities, and sought to make a reimbursement claim.

While searching through several law firms from which to seek legal assistance, the client visited Daeryun, which has organizational capacity and specialized expertise.

What Is a Reimbursement Claim?

The right of reimbursement, which allows a party to bring a reimbursement claim lawsuit, refers to the right of a person who has paid a debt on behalf of another to seek repayment from the party who actually owes the debt, in place of the creditor.

As in the case of the client above, a person may claim a portion of the damages paid from another party found to share joint responsibility for the victim's loss.

However, in order to file a reimbursement claim lawsuit, the defendant who lost the damages lawsuit must pay the plaintiff the full amount of the consolation money and delay damages set out in the judgment.

※ The extinctive prescription for a reimbursement claim is 10 years by law, and if the right is not exercised within that period, the right itself may be extinguished.

When the client was sued by the victim for damages, the court held that 'the emergency exit in this case had a defect in its installation and maintenance, in that it did not fully provide the fall-prevention facilities required by statute, and therefore the plaintiff in this matter (the client), as its possessor, is liable to compensate the victim for the damage caused by this accident.'

The fundamental reason the victim was harmed in this case was the absence of fall-prevention facilities at the emergency exit.

Under the firefighting facility construction contract, the client had entrusted the defendant with the complete installation of that facility and the issuance of the certificate, and the client operated its business in the building in reliance on the defendant.

Accordingly, it was argued that the cause of the defect in the installation and maintenance of the fall-prevention facilities, which constitute a safety facility under the firefighting facility construction contract, lies with the defendant, and that therefore the defendant is likewise a joint tortfeasor with respect to the victim.

The client, as a non-specialist in firefighting facilities and the like, had no choice but to fully trust the defendant, who was a specialist and the operator of a firefighting facility company, and to believe that the safety facilities of the premises were fully in place.

It was therefore argued that the fault ratio should be assessed taking into account that the responsibility for the absence of fall-prevention facilities at these premises lies for the most part with the defendant.

A reimbursement claim lawsuit can proceed only after the client has already been sued by the victim for damages and the like and has paid consolation money, which means the client will already have suffered a significant financial impact.

It can therefore be difficult to find an appropriate response while feeling overwhelmed, so it is advisable to discuss your situation through a consultation with an attorney specializing in this area and to prepare a reimbursement claim lawsuit.

The Corporate Legal Affairs Group of Daeryun Law Firm brings together a team of corporate legal advisory attorneys that includes specialists in particular fields, such as certified public accountants, tax accountants, patent attorneys, and labor attorneys, and it provides one-stop legal services covering legal advisory and corporate litigation.

If you need assistance with a related matter, you are welcome to contact Daeryun Law Firm at any time.