Yonhap reported that Japan's Nippon Steel Corp has reiterated its claim that the company is not liable to pay compensation to South Korean victims of forced labour during World War II. At the hearing, the company repeated arguments that have already been rejected by the top court in the landmark ruling. The lawyers for Nippon Steel said the issue of compensation claims stemming from Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rules was settled under a 1965 treaty that normalized diplomatic ties between the two countries. They also said Nippon Steel is a different entity from Japan Iron and thus does not inherit the wartime steelmaker's liabilities. The court set the next hearing for May 21. The Seoul Central District Court heard arguments in a lawsuit filed by two South Koreans who worked for Japan Iron and Steel Co, Nippon Steel's forerunner, in 1941 and 1944. The plaintiffs demanded 100 million won (USD 88,295) per person in damages. They lodged the suit in April 2019 after the Supreme Court ordered Nippon Steel to pay four South Korean wartime forced labourers the same amount in October 2018.
Yonhap reported that Japan's Nippon Steel Corp has reiterated its claim that the company is not liable to pay compensation to South Korean victims of forced labour during World War II. At the hearing, the company repeated arguments that have already been rejected by the top court in the landmark ruling. The lawyers for Nippon Steel said the issue of compensation claims stemming from Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rules was settled under a 1965 treaty that normalized diplomatic ties between the two countries. They also said Nippon Steel is a different entity from Japan Iron and thus does not inherit the wartime steelmaker's liabilities. The court set the next hearing for May 21. The Seoul Central District Court heard arguments in a lawsuit filed by two South Koreans who worked for Japan Iron and Steel Co, Nippon Steel's forerunner, in 1941 and 1944. The plaintiffs demanded 100 million won (USD 88,295) per person in damages. They lodged the suit in April 2019 after the Supreme Court ordered Nippon Steel to pay four South Korean wartime forced labourers the same amount in October 2018.
