CONTENTS
- 1. Incheon Law Firm | Circumstances of the Case
- - Relationship With the Victim
- - The Victim's Complaint
- - The Client's Urgent Request for Assistance
- 2. Incheon Law Firm | Case Analysis
- - Issues
- - Review of Relevant Precedents
- 3. Incheon Law Firm | Concluded as No Charge for Insufficient Evidence
1. Incheon Law Firm | Circumstances of the Case
The Incheon law firm attorney examined the circumstances in order to respond to the complaint for defamation and insult.
Relationship With the Victim
The client and the victim met at a math academy as teacher and student.
During the winter break, while a special class was being conducted to help the client place in a math competition, the client became dissatisfied with the victim's teaching method.
The victim's teaching method covered topics unrelated to the curriculum for preparing for the math competition, and the client, together with friends, expressed dissatisfaction with this.
While discussing complaints about the victim with the 10 students preparing for the competition together in a group messenger room, things went too far, and they composited the client's facial photograph onto the faces of well-known politicians, the president, and celebrities.
The Victim's Complaint
When the victim found out through a tip from one student, the matter came to the surface.
The victim filed a complaint against the client, who had led the conduct, for defamation by stating false facts and for insult.
After the incident, the client prepared letters of apology on several occasions to convey an apology, but the victim tore them up immediately upon receiving them, and in the end the client also stopped preparing letters of apology.
The Client's Urgent Request for Assistance
The client requested assistance from an Incheon attorney in a situation where no settlement had been reached with the victim and the victim was taking a firm stance.
In addition, because the client was still a minor and a high school student, the client hoped to reach an amicable settlement with the victim and to receive leniency.
2. Incheon Law Firm | Case Analysis
The Incheon law firm attorney analyzed the client's case and identified the following issues and relevant precedents.
Issues
The client's remarks fell within the category of subjective evaluation and expression of opinion arising from dissatisfaction with the educational curriculum.
For the offense of defamation to be committed, a specific fact must be stated, but the remarks in question amounted to no more than an expression of mere suspicion and opinion.
Accordingly, since the client's remarks were difficult to regard as the 'statement of fact' required for the offense of defamation, they were considered not to constitute an offense.
Although it was acknowledged that the client composited the victim's photograph and posted it in the group chat, this could be viewed as an expression of dissatisfaction with the victim's frequent political remarks during class.
In particular, for the offense of insult to be committed, the expression must be one capable of lowering social reputation, not merely one that arouses unpleasant feelings, and it was difficult to regard the photo compositing as falling within this.
Although letters of apology were prepared for the victim on several occasions to convey a sincere apology, the victim instead engaged in behavior that was unreasonable for an adult, such as tearing up and discarding the letters of apology in front of the client.
In addition, the victim demanded an excessive amount of settlement money from the client's parents and threatened that, if it was not paid, the victim would exclude the client from the math competition and from future placements.
Such conduct by the victim was considered inappropriate for an educator and could be assessed as an act of placing mental pressure on the client.
Review of Relevant Precedents
① Suwon District Court, Judgment of May 17, 2018, 2017 Go-jeong 992, 2017 Go-jeong 1129 (publicity denied)
For the offenses of insult and defamation to be committed, the requirement of publicity must be satisfied, but because the defendants' caricaturing of the victim in a KakaoTalk chat room took place in a private chat room that third parties could not see, publicity was denied.
② Suwon District Court Anyang Branch, Judgment of December 14, 2022, 2022 Go-jeong 330 (publicity denied)
This was a case in which remarks and photographs demeaning the victim were shared in a KakaoTalk group chat room, and the court denied publicity, finding that the expressions amounted to no more than minor, abstract opinions or abusive language.
As in the precedents above, the client's case took place in a chat room in which students attending the class together participated, and it occurred in a space intended for private conversation among students.
This was not a place accessible to an unspecified number of people.
In particular, the client's remarks fell at the level of an expression of critical opinion and did not satisfy the requirement of publicity.
③ Supreme Court, Judgment of July 10, 2014, 2014 Do 4299
In that precedent, the court held that the contents of a letter of apology alone could not be regarded as the defendant having confessed to all of the criminal facts.
This supported the position that even if the client had submitted a letter of apology to the victim, it could not be regarded as a confession to the criminal conduct.
3. Incheon Law Firm | Concluded as No Charge for Insufficient Evidence
With the assistance of the Incheon law firm attorney, the client was ultimately able to conclude the matter at the police investigation stage.
The police determined that the evidence claimed by the victim did not satisfy the requirements for recognizing the client's intent or publicity, and issued a non-referral decision.
In the end, the client concluded the investigation with no charge for insufficient evidence.
If you are under investigation on a charge of defamation and insult in this way, it is important to review and argue the relevant law with the help of an 🔗Incheon attorney located in Songdo.
If you have a related trial coming up, please explore your response options through a 🔗legal consultation reservation.
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