Shareholders who said they suffered losses from the "Invossa (Invossa-K Inj.) scandal" again had their damages claims against Kolon Life Science and Kolon TissueGene rejected.
The Civil Agreement Division 30 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Director General Kim Seok-beom) on the 5th dismissed a 6.5 billion won damages claim filed by 214 shareholders against Kolon Life Science, Kolon Group Honorary Chairman Lee Woong-yeol, former Kolon Life Science CEO Lee Woo-seok and others. The court on the same day also dismissed a 19.7 billion won damages claim filed by 1,082 shareholders against Kolon TissueGene and the honorary chairman.
Invossa, developed by Kolon TissueGene, the U.S. subsidiary of Kolon Life Science, is a gene therapy for osteoarthritis containing human chondrocytes and received approval from the Ministery of Food and Drug Safety in 2017. But in Mar. 2019, it was revealed that one of the main components was not chondrocytes but kidney cells (293-derived cells), leading to the cancellation of the approval, followed by fallout including a sharp drop in the stock price.
Shareholders filed multiple lawsuits claiming Kolon TissueGene and Kolon Life Science were aware of a change in the main component but made false disclosures, but the courts have continued to reject the plaintiffs' claims. In Dec. 2025, the court dismissed a damages claim of about 6.4 billion won filed by some 170 affected shareholders, and in Jan. 2026 it also rejected a claim of 8.6 billion won filed by some 500 shareholders. The reasoning was that even if the component had changed, it was hard to find that efficacy or harmfulness had changed significantly, and it was difficult to find that the companies falsely stated or omitted information material to investment decisions.
In connection with the Invossa scandal, Kolon Life Science and Kolon TissueGene executives and management were also acquitted in a separate criminal trial. The honorary chairman was indicted in Jul. 2020 on charges including violating the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act and the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act for manufacturing and selling with a component different from the approved one—"kidney-derived cells"—from Nov. 2017 to Mar. 2019, generating 16 billion won in sales, but was acquitted at first instance on Nov. 2024. Former CEO Lee Woo-seok and others who were indicted together were also acquitted.