Government drops appeal in Mason case, must pay $62 million

The South Korean government has decided not to appeal a court ruling that rejected its bid to annul an international arbitration award in a case brought by U.S.-based private equity firm Mason.

On Friday, the Ministry of Justice said it would not challenge the first-instance decision, issued by a Singapore court, that dismissed the government’s petition to overturn an investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) award. “After thorough discussions with the government’s legal representatives and external experts, we have decided not to appeal the court’s decision,” the ministry said in a statement.

As a result, the government must pay Mason approximately 86 billion won, or about $62 million, including the principal and delayed interest. The specific payment schedule is reportedly still under negotiation.

Mason, a shareholder in Samsung C&T, filed the ISDS claim in 2018, alleging it suffered about $200 million in losses from the 2015 merger between Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries. The firm claimed the Korean government improperly pressured the National Pension Service to support the merger, which led to a drop in Samsung Electronics’ stock price.

In April 2023, an arbitral tribunal under the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ordered South Korea to pay Mason $32 million plus interest. The government sought to annul the award in Singapore, the seat of arbitration, but its petition was dismissed in March of this year.


최미송기자 cms@donga.com