A lawyer who learned only upon arriving at the airport that a travel ban had been imposed for a prosecution investigation—and missed the flight as a result—will receive damages from the state. The Supreme Court found that deferring notice of a travel ban is an exception allowed only when the risk of flight or destruction of evidence is high.
The Supreme Court's First Division (presiding Justice Seo Kyung-hwan) on the 8th finalized a lower court ruling ordering the state to pay attorney Baek Ju-seon 5,855,000 won in a damages suit Baek filed against the state.
On Sept. 25, 2022, while investigating the Seongnam FC sponsorship case related to then Gyeonggi governor Lee Jae-myung, the Seongnam branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office asked the Ministry of Justice to impose a travel ban on attorney Baek and to defer notice of the travel-ban decision. The Ministry of Justice decided the next day to impose the travel ban and, while extending the ban through Dec. 24, accepted the request to defer notice and did not inform Baek of the decision.
On Dec. 8, Baek went to Incheon International Airport to attend a bar association event in Japan and learned of the travel ban. At Baek's request, the travel ban was lifted. But the reserved flight had already departed, and Baek was unable to leave.
Baek then sued the Ministry of Justice, arguing the travel ban and the notice deferral were unlawful, and sought 30 million won in consolation money and damages equal to the event registration refund fee.
In the first trial, the court ordered the state to pay Baek 855,000 won for the registration refund cancellation fee and 1 million won in consolation money, totaling 1,855,000 won. The first-trial panel found the Ministry of Justice's imposition of the travel ban lawful but held it unlawful not to notify Baek of the decision.
The first-trial panel found there was reason for investigators to deem questioning necessary because Baek had served as an auditor for Seongnam FC and had previously issued a public declaration of support as a college alumnus of President Lee Jae-myung, who was the subject of the investigation. It added, "Korea guarantees an opportunity to contest a travel ban, but if someone learns of the ban only upon arriving at the airport, the person will likely be unable to depart that day even if they contest it," and "Deferring notice of a travel ban needs to be allowed only as an exception."
On appeal, the court increased the consolation money and ruled that the state must pay 5,855,000 won.
The Supreme Court said the grounds for exceptionally allowing deferral of notice of a travel ban—"when it is recognized that there is a concern that a serious and obvious obstacle to a criminal investigation may arise"—must be interpreted strictly, such as where there is a high degree of probability that the very act of notice would lead the travel-ban subject or criminal suspect to flee or destroy evidence.
A Supreme Court official said, "This is the first case in which the Supreme Court presented criteria for determining the illegality of deferring notice of a travel-ban decision and its extension."