Singer and actor Cha Eun-woo appointed one of South Korea's five largest law firms that handled lawsuits related to girl group NewJeans as his legal representative, and attention has focused on the fact that the firm has a former Seoul Regional Tax Service chief as an adviser.
On the 26th, news emerged that Cha Eun-woo had appointed attorneys from Shin & Kim LLC as his legal representatives. A Fantagio official told OSEN that "unable to confirm," but this was read by some as effectively an acknowledgment, drawing even more attention.
Shin & Kim is considered one of the country's five major large law firms. In particular, it recently handled the NewJeans-related lawsuit and gained wide public recognition. NewJeans lost that related lawsuit, but internet users were curious whether Cha Eun-woo could win against the tax agency.
In this context, Shin & Kim's advisory history also drew attention. Former Seoul Regional Tax Service chief Im Seong-bin joined Shin & Kim as an adviser in September last year. He also formerly served as director of investigation division 4 at the Seoul Regional Tax Service, which handled Cha Eun-woo's additional tax assessment, prompting criticism that this amounted to deference to former officials.
Shin & Kim is reported to have strengthened its capabilities in the field of taxes with the addition of adviser Im Seong-bin. Observers are watching whether the beneficiary will be Cha Eun-woo, who became a topic of conversation for the largest-ever tax evasion amount among domestic entertainers.
Recently, Cha Eun-woo received a notice of an additional tax assessment in the 20 billion won range from the Seoul Regional Tax Service. This is the highest additional tax amount ever for an entertainer. Moreover, it was reported that Cha Eun-woo had already undergone an intensive tax audit before enlisting in the army band in July last year.
However, in a personal post on his social media the evening of the 26th, he reflected on his taxpaying obligations and apologized, and he explained regarding his enlistment that "this was by no means an intentional choice to avoid this controversy." He added, "I will faithfully comply with the tax-related procedures going forward. I will also humbly accept the final judgment rendered by the relevant authorities and take responsibility accordingly."
[Photo] OSEN DB.
[OSEN]