Why did the court ‘dismiss’ the claim for compensation for mental damage from ‘illegal dismissal’?

When I raised an audit, I was notified of dismissal from my position as bank manager… Request for payment of mental compensation and alimony
The court said, “Conflict occurred within the autonomous committee… Notification of dismissal is a measure to resolve the problem.”

Even if the cancellation of the bank account was determined to be invalid through an administrative lawsuit, the court ruled that liability for damages could not be held if there were no illegal elements.

On April 29, the 1st Civil Affairs Division of the Gangneung Branch of the Chuncheon District Court ruled that the plaintiff lost in the appeal trial for damages filed by Mr. A, a man in his 70s, against a local government and its public official, Mr. B.

Mr. A, who was working as a bank manager, requested an audit of some of the participants in the Resident Autonomy Committee event from the Administrative Welfare Center in 2021. The reason was that something inappropriate was done at the event at the time. Then, Mr. B, who was the center director at the time, dismissed Mr. A from his position as bank manager on the grounds that he was hindering harmony among residents.

Accordingly, Mr. A filed a lawsuit against the city to invalidate the notice of bank account cancellation and won. Afterwards, Mr. A filed a lawsuit demanding 30 million won in alimony from Mr. B and others, claiming that he had suffered mental distress due to the dismissal notice.

Mr. B and others refuted that there were no illegal elements in the dismissal process. As a result of the audit, Mr. A's claims were not true. Nevertheless, he claimed that the local public opinion worsened when Mr. A did not apologize, and the decision to dismiss was made to resolve this.

The first trial dismissed Mr. A’s claim. The court said, “The truth of the matter raised by the plaintiff was not clear, and this led to conflicts and collective complaints both inside and outside the resident autonomy committee. Therefore, there is a need for the center director to take measures to resolve complaints and resolve conflicts as part of the resident autonomy duties,” and said there were no illegal elements in the dismissal.

Mr. A, who was dissatisfied with this, appealed, but the second trial also dismissed the decision.

Attorney Seo In-ho of Daeryun Law Firm, who represented Mr. B and others, explained, “Even if the dismissal act is confirmed to be invalid through an administrative lawsuit, in order to file a civil suit for mental damage, an illegal act must be included in the dismissal process.” He added, “Only when it is clear that it cannot be tolerated under social norms, such as intentionally creating a reason for dismissal, is it recognized as causing mental pain.”

He added, “It is true that a conflict arose, such as a boycott of the event, due to Mr. A, and Mr. B was only trying to resolve the problem.” He added, “Because Mr. B had no intention of intentionally driving Mr. A out of the bank account position, he was able to receive a dismissal order.”
 

Reporter Kim Jong-cheol (jckim99@sportsseoul.com)

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Why did the court ‘dismiss’ the claim for compensation for psychological damage from ‘illegal dismissal’? (Shortcut)