South Korean court overturns $1 billion payout in ‘divorce of the century’

South Korea’s Supreme Court has overturned a lower court’s order for billionaire Chae Tae-won to pay his ex-wife 1.38 trillion won ($1 billion; £788 million) in damages in what local media called the “divorce of the century”.

Citing a miscalculation that inflated the value of the couple’s assets, he ordered a retrial.

The case has gripped South Korea as Mr Chey heads the powerful conglomerate SK Group, while his ex-wife Roh So-yong is the daughter of a former president.

The marriage broke up in 2015 after Mr Chey admitted he had a child with his lover.

The payout of 1.38 trillion won was decided by a court in the capital Seoul in 2024. At the time, it was believed to be the largest divorce settlement in South Korean history.

The court said a 30 billion won fund of Ms Roh’s father, former President Roh Tae-woo, had contributed to SK Group’s growth and could be considered her contribution to the couple’s total assets.

Mr. Chey then appealed the settlement.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that this fund “appears to have arisen from illegally obtained bribes” from the former president and therefore cannot be considered part of the couple’s assets.

“I think it is very important that the Supreme Court has clearly declared that it is wrong to recognize this as a contribution to the couple’s joint property,” said Mr Chai’s lawyer, Lee Jae-gun.

However, the Supreme Court upheld the 2 billion won alimony payment to Ms. Roh.

SK shares fell 5.4 percent after Thursday’s ruling, which was seen as prolonging Mr Chey’s legal battle with his ex-wife.

But in the short term, analysts believe a shake-up at SK Group is unlikely as Mr Chei is not forced to immediately raise funds for his divorce settlement.

It controls the group’s key subsidiaries such as SK Telecom, SK Square and SK Innovation.

SK’s business spans the telecommunications, energy, pharmaceutical and semiconductor sectors.