Real Estate Law Office | Full Recovery of a 100 Million Won Deposit through the Assistance of a Real Estate Law Office

2026.05.08고병준

The client who came to the real estate law office wished to recover a lease deposit of 100 million won.

Through the assistance of a specialist attorney, the client prevailed in the deposit lawsuit and recovered the full 100 million won.

1. The Client Who Came to the Real Estate Law Office

Real Estate Law Office | Full Recovery of a 100 Million Won Deposit through the Assistance of a Real Estate Law Office

The circumstances of the client who came to the real estate law office are as follows.

The client entered into a lease agreement with the lessor, Mr. A (hereinafter the defendant), and paid a deposit of 100 million won to the defendant.

Before the contract period ended, the client clearly conveyed an intention to terminate the contract to the defendant about six months before the contract's termination and demanded the return of the deposit.

However, the defendant left only vague answers such as ‘I am still putting the unit up for rent’ and ‘I will try to manage it by the expiration date,’ and did not give the client a definite assurance that the deposit would be returned.

The client sent a certified mail notice and continuously attempted to make contact, but the defendant ignored the certified mail and, in the end, continuously avoided the client's contact until the contract's expiration date.

Accordingly, the client determined that a legal response was necessary and requested the assistance of the real estate law office in order to recover the deposit.

The Real Estate Law Office's Assistance

1) Proof of the Duty to Return the Deposit Based on Precedent

Supreme Court Decision of September 28, 1977, 77Da1241

If the lease agreement period has expired, the lessee has a duty to return the leased building, and the lessor has a duty to return the deposit excluding the cost of damages incurred during the lease, and these duties must be performed simultaneously.

The real estate law office first cited the Supreme Court precedent stating that ‘if the contract period has expired, the lessor has a duty to return the deposit’ to emphasize that the defendant was not performing the duty to return.

2) The Client's Clear Intention to Terminate the Contract

The real estate law office secured and organized the records of text messages exchanged between the client and the defendant, the lease agreement, the certified mail notice, and other materials.

Using the record in which the client sent the defendant the message ‘Please return it by the 00th of 00 month,’ and the certified mail notice formally demanding the return of the deposit, the office argued that the client had clearly expressed an intention to terminate the contract and that the defendant had deliberately avoided it.

3) Emphasis on the Possibility of a Decline in the Client's Credit Score

In addition, the real estate specialist attorney presented, as evidence, the bank's notice informing the client of the possibility of a decline in credit score due to the delinquency in loan repayment.

Through this, the office argued that the client had unwillingly obtained a loan extension because the deposit had not been returned and had therefore come to bear additional interest.

The office also emphasized the possibility of a decline in credit score and stressed that, if the client did not recover the deposit, the client was facing a realistic risk of disadvantage across financial transactions in the future.

Result of the Real Estate Law Office's Assistance, Prevailing in the Deposit Lawsuit

In accordance with the real estate law office's assistance, the court recognized the following points.

1. That the lease agreement was lawfully terminated and that, even though the client had clearly expressed an intention to terminate the contract, the defendant did not perform the duty to return the deposit without justifiable cause

2. That, due to the non-return of the deposit, the client was sustaining substantial disadvantages such as a loan extension, additional interest burden, and the risk of a decline in credit score

Accordingly, the court rendered a judgment that the defendant return the full lease deposit of 100 million won to the client.

2. The Deposit Lawsuit as Explained by the Real Estate Law Office

At the real estate law office, we support the overall legal response to return procedures, including the deposit lawsuit that a lessee files against a lessor who does not return the deposit and the order for registration of the lease right.

▶ Housing Lease Protection Act Article 3-2 (Recovery of Deposit)

① Where a lessee applies for an auction of the leased house pursuant to a final judgment in a lawsuit for the return of the deposit or any other title of execution equivalent thereto, the performance of the counter-obligation or the tender of such performance shall not be a requirement for the commencement of execution, notwithstanding Article 41 of the 「Civil Execution Act」 concerning the requirements for the commencement of execution.

▶ Housing Lease Protection Act Article 3-3 (Order for Registration of Lease Right)

① Where the deposit is not returned after the lease has ended, the lessee may apply for an order for registration of the lease right to the district court, the branch of the district court, or the city or county court having jurisdiction over the location of the leased house.

Pursuant to the Housing Lease Protection Act, the lessee may have his or her rights protected, in order to obtain the return of the deposit, through legal procedures such as the deposit lawsuit or the order for registration of the lease right.

The Procedure of the Deposit Lawsuit

Sending of certified mail notice → Settlement and conciliation → Filing of the deposit return lawsuit → Application for compulsory execution

The deposit return procedure proceeds in the order set out above, but the key at every stage is how the evidence is preserved and at what point the matter is converted into legal procedures.

In particular, if the fact of the termination of the lease and the demand for return are not clearly proven at the certified mail notice and litigation stages, the dispute may become prolonged.

Therefore, preparing the procedure systematically from the initial response is an important standard for recovering the deposit promptly.

3. Why a Real Estate Law Office Is Necessary

At the real estate law office, when proceeding with a deposit lawsuit, we systematically organize everything from the fact of the termination of the lease to the circumstances in which the return of the deposit was delayed or refused, and establish a response strategy.

In particular, the process of organizing the reasons why the return of the deposit is necessary into objective evidence, such as the contract, financial materials, and communication records, and presenting it in a legally persuasive manner is important.

In order to organize such a complex structure of proof and to establish a litigation strategy as well, receiving professional legal assistance helps in safely recovering the deposit.

The real estate law office's response strategy is as follows.

If You Receive the Real Estate Law Office's Assistance

1) Organization of the Legal Issues Regarding the Requirements for the Return of the Deposit

Based on the lease agreement, the time of the notice of termination, and the date of the contract's termination, we legally specify when the duty to return the deposit arose.

We design the logic in a structure that preempts, on the basis of precedent, the defenses that the defendant might raise, such as ‘failure to secure a new tenant’ or ‘failure to perform restoration to the original state’.

2) Evidence-Centered Reconstruction That Holds Up in Litigation

Among the deposit payment records, the certified mail notice, and the text and call records, we select only the materials that the court directly reflects in its judgment and reconstruct the list of evidence.

By connecting and explaining which issue each piece of evidence proves, we ensure that persuasive proof is established.

3) Establishment of a Recovery Strategy Premised on the Feasibility of Execution

confirm the existence of any mortgage or provisional attachment through analysis of the certified copy of the register and review the feasibility of recovering the deposit in advance.

Where necessary, we set a response direction that takes into account provisional attachment and compulsory execution, thereby minimizing any gap after the judgment.

If you are concerned about a deposit return issue, we recommend that you check the response direction suited to your matter through the real estate law office 🔗legal consultation appointment.

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This content is based on actual cases handled by Daeryun Law LLC and has been partially adapted. All copyrights belong to Daeryun Law LLC.
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