'Government official' sued for 700 million won for demolishing artwork... Law: “No liability for compensation”

The former CEO of an officetel commercial management group, who was sued for damages worth 700 million won for arbitrarily removing an art sculpture installed in the building's common space, won the case in the first trial.

On the 17th of last month, the Seoul Central District Court dismissed the plaintiff's claim for damages filed by the officetel commercial management group against four people, including former CEO A.

The management group filed a lawsuit demanding compensation for 707.3 million won in damages suffered by the officetel due to the arbitrary demolition of art sculptures by Mr. A and others.

Mr. A and others dismantled and discarded the art sculpture installed in front of the main entrance on the first floor of the officetel building in 2015.

Afterwards, in 2020, the district office ordered the management to restore the demolished sculpture to its original state.

This measure was in accordance with Article 11, Paragraph 1 of the old Culture and Arts Promotion Act, which stipulates that when constructing a building of a certain size or larger, an amount equivalent to a certain percentage of the construction cost must be used to install art decorations such as paintings, sculptures, and crafts.

The management team that received instructions for restoration claimed that Mr. A, who was in charge of disposal at the time, demolished the sculpture without permission from the district office and caused damage to the officetel by failing to obtain the consent of more than 2/3 of unit owners as required under the Complex Building Act.

On the other hand, Mr. A and others refuted that they were not responsible for compensation.

According to the management regulations, they are only liable for damages when damage is caused intentionally or through gross negligence, but they said they did not neglect their obligations at the time.

At the time, the sculpture was demolished in response to complaints from residents, and the management center also did not notify them of legal procedures during the process.

The court ruled in favor of Mr. A and others.

The court said, “It is acknowledged that the defendants proposed the project and demolished it without going through the procedures set forth in the Multi-Purpose Building Act,” but added, “There is a strong possibility that this action will be seen as a measure for the benefit of the residents, such as maintenance of old facilities and improvement of aesthetics, rather than for personal gain.”

At the same time, he stated the reason for sentencing, saying, "The defendants are not legal experts, and since the professional consignment management company that communicated with the defendants during the demolition did not point out any legal problems, it is difficult to say that they violated their duty of care."

Attorney Park Jeong-gyu of Daeryun Law Firm, who represented the defendant, said, "The issue in this case was whether the liability requirement of 'intention or gross negligence' required by the management regulations was met." He added, "The members of the management group explained that as 'ordinary people' who are merely representatives of each neighborhood, they were not specifically aware of the laws related to the sculpture in this case, and that it was difficult to easily understand the legal nature of the sculpture or the basis for its installation."

 

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'Government officials' sued for 700 million won for removing artwork... Law: “No liability for compensation”