CONTENTS
- 1. The Client's Situation
- - Damages Explained by the Damages Attorney
- 2. Damages Attorney, Assistance in Reducing the Claimed Amount
- 3. Result of the Attorney's Assistance, an 80% Reduction Achieved
1. The Client's Situation
This is the story of the client.
The client, an elementary school teacher, was in a situation where a parent had claimed child abuse damages.
The client requested that the damages be reduced as much as possible.
Damages Explained by the Damages Attorney
A 🔗lawsuit for damages is, as the term suggests, a lawsuit brought to hold a party civilly liable for a loss and to be compensated for that loss.
Because it is a civil claim for damages separate from criminal proceedings, a lawsuit for damages may be pursued separately even if the result of the criminal proceedings is an acquittal.
The following are points to be careful of in a lawsuit for damages.
1. The causal relationship between the loss and its cause must be clear.
2. It must be proven that the other party caused the loss intentionally or negligently.
Only when the causal relationship between the harmful act and the loss is clearly proven can a lawsuit be brought and compensation obtained.
Child Abuse by a Teacher: Level of Punishment
🔗Child abuse is punished under the Act on Special Cases concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes.
This Act strictly prohibits acts of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse of a child, as well as neglect, and includes provisions for aggravated punishment.
▶Imprisonment for up to 10 years or a fine of up to 50 million won
-An act of abuse that causes injury to a child's body
-An act of abuse such as sexual harassment or sexual violence that causes a child sexual humiliation
-An act of emotional abuse that harms a child's mental health and development
-An act of neglect that abandons a child under one's protection and supervision, or that neglects basic protection, upbringing, treatment, and education, including food, clothing, and shelter
-An act of putting a child with a disability on public display
-An act of making a child beg or using a child to beg
▶Imprisonment for up to 5 years or a fine of up to 30 million won
An act of making a child perform acrobatics harmful to the child's health or safety for the purpose of public entertainment or amusement
▶Imprisonment for up to 1 year or a fine of up to 5 million won
-An act in which a person other than a duly authorized placement agency arranges the upbringing of a child and acquires money or goods, or demands or promises money or goods
-An act of using money or goods donated or paid for a child for purposes other than that purpose
2. Damages Attorney, Assistance in Reducing the Claimed Amount
An attorney experienced in damages claims assisted the client in reducing the amount of damages claimed against the client.
The attorney developed a strategy centered on the argument that the amount of damages was excessive relative to the conduct at issue.
Argument on the Judgment in a Child Abuse Criminal Case
Over approximately 30 years in the teaching profession, the client had never once acted against his convictions.
In this child abuse criminal case as well, the court deliberated until the very end over whether to find the client not guilty before ultimately ordering only the completion of an educational program.
That alone shows that the client's conduct toward the student was at a level that made it questionable whether abuse had even occurred.
The attorney argued that the amount of damages claimed by the parents was excessive relative to the conduct and requested a reduction.
Argument That the Conduct Was Guidance for Educational Purposes
At the time, the client had merely observed the students closely and provided guidance appropriate to the situation in order to settle a disorderly learning environment.
The client provided that guidance to let the child know that the child's behavior was wrong.
The attorney emphasized that the client's intent had been to correct the disorderly students so that they could adapt to group life, and argued that the amount of damages was excessive relative to that intent.
3. Result of the Attorney's Assistance, an 80% Reduction Achieved
With the attorney's assistance, the client succeeded in obtaining a reduction of as much as 80% from the amount of damages claimed by the parents.
The client expressed gratitude, explaining, “I was very worried because the amount of damages was so large. Through the attorney's skilled assistance, I was able to reduce the amount substantially.”
As of 2023, a total of 793 child abuse cases involving elementary, middle, and high school teachers were recorded.
In child abuse cases, the most important issue is whether the teacher's conduct constitutes legitimate guidance for the purpose of educating the student.
In fact, there was a case in which a teacher who scolded a student for not participating in class and grabbed the student's arm to pull the student up received a fine, but the Supreme Court reversed the lower court's decision, finding that the conduct constituted legitimate guidance within the teacher's discretion.
This can be regarded as a representative case in which a teacher's conduct was recognized as legitimate.
To properly establish a teacher's rights and discretion in a child abuse damages lawsuit and related matters, consulting an attorney experienced in this area can be helpful.
Daeryun Law Firm provides response strategies tailored to each client's situation, with its attorneys drawing on AI trained on hundreds of thousands of case precedents.
If you need to respond to a damages lawsuit in a situation such as the above, we recommend obtaining an 🔗attorney referral from Daeryun Law Firm.
This content is based on actual case studies of Daeryun Law LLC with some adaptations, and the copyright belongs to our firm.
Unauthorized reproduction, duplication, or distribution and other copyright infringements may result in legal action under applicable laws.
