Samsung’s executive chairman, Lee Jae-yong, has been cleared of stock and accounting fraud by South Korea’s Supreme Court, bringing an end to a years-long legal battle surrounding a controversial 2015 merger.
Lee, who has led Samsung since 2014 and is the grandson of the company’s founder, was accused of manipulating company valuations to facilitate the $8 billion merger between Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, a move seen as a strategy to consolidate control of the conglomerate.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court upheld lower court rulings that had acquitted Lee, confirming that the merger and related accounting practices involving Samsung Biologics were lawful.
“The court has confirmed that the merger and accounting were legitimate. We appreciate the wise judgment after five years of legal proceedings,” Samsung’s lawyers said.
Lee’s legal troubles began in 2017 when he was arrested on bribery charges linked to the merger, leading to several court trials, prison time, and eventually a presidential pardon in 2021 on the grounds of national economic interest following the COVID-19 pandemic.
While the latest verdict clears Lee of criminal wrongdoing, Samsung still faces pressures from global competition, a sluggish stock market performance, and ongoing public scrutiny of the outsized influence of family-run conglomerates, or chaebols, in South Korea’s economy.
