A South Korea divorce case has ended with a court-ordered payout of 944 billion won, after an earlier ruling had set a much larger sum.
South Korea divorce case headlines took another turn as a court ordered SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won to pay his ex-wife 944 billion won in a long-running split that local media has dubbed the “divorce of the century.” The award still needs to be finalized, but it marks the latest chapter in a battle that has dragged on for years and drawn outsized attention because of the family, the money and the company at the center of it all.
The amount is lower than the 1.38 trillion won Chey was told to pay Roh Soh-yeong in 2024. Chey’s lawyers said he was deeply sorry that the divorce proceedings have caused concern and said they would share a specific response after reviewing the ruling. The court’s latest decision follows a fresh look at how the couple’s assets should be divided after 35 years of marriage.
The case has carried unusual political and business weight because Roh is the daughter of former President Roh Tae-woo, who led South Korea between 1988 and 1993. During the earlier trial, Roh’s legal team argued that Chey had benefited from help provided by her father. The court at that stage said Roh Tae-woo had given Chey 30 billion Korean won from his slush fund in 1991 and used that figure in the larger divorce award.
That earlier ruling did not stand. South Korea’s Supreme Court overturned it last year, saying the slush funds were illegally obtained and could not be counted as part of the couple’s assets. That legal reversal set up the new outcome and narrowed the financial judgment now facing Chey. For a case that has already moved through multiple courts, the result shows how one of South Korea’s most famous family disputes has been reshaped by the country’s highest legal authority.
“A South Korea divorce case has ended with a court-ordered payout of 944 billion won, after an earlier ruling had set a much larger sum.”
The stakes go beyond one marriage. SK Group is one of South Korea’s chaebols, the family-run conglomerates that dominate much of the country’s economy. The company started as a textile business in 1953 and expanded into a broad range of industries. Today it is the country’s second-largest chaebol after Samsung, with businesses that touch daily life through SK Telecom and SK petrol stations.
Its global profile has risen sharply as SK Hynix, the semiconductor arm of SK Group, became a central player in the AI boom. The chipmaker surpassed $1 trillion on the South Korean stock market in May, and the group later raised $26.5 billion in its New York share offering, the largest listing ever by a foreign firm in the United States. SK Hynix also supplies chips to Nvidia and recently made a record-setting debut on the U.S. stock market.
That growing prominence has made Chey a more visible figure at home as well. Last month, President Lee Jae Myung praised him during the unveiling of a major AI investment plan, calling Chey and Samsung chairman JY Lee “Heroes of Korean People.” Against that backdrop, the South Korea divorce case is more than a private family dispute; it sits at the intersection of business power, political history and the country’s economic ambitions. For American readers, the story matters because SK’s reach runs through the semiconductor supply chain and the AI race now shaping global tech competition.
Frequently asked questions
How much did the court order Chey Tae-won to pay?
The court ordered him to pay 944 billion won. The award still needs to be finalized.
Why did the earlier divorce ruling change?
South Korea’s Supreme Court overturned the earlier ruling last year, saying the slush funds were illegally obtained and could not be counted as marital assets.
What was the previous divorce amount Chey was told to pay?
In 2024, Chey was told to pay 1.38 trillion won.
Why does this divorce case attract so much attention?
It involves the head of SK Group, the daughter of former President Roh Tae-woo, and a company with major economic importance in South Korea and the global semiconductor market.
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