The court did not accept The Born Korea CEO Paik Jong-won's claim, made on broadcasts and elsewhere, that he is the "original creator of paper-thin samgyeopsal." The court said paper-thin samgyeopsal appears to have already been popular in places like Busan in the 1980s, and dismissed a damages claim filed by a The Born Korea franchisee.
According to the legal community on the 5th, the Anyang branch of the Suwon District Court on the 25th of last month ruled against the plaintiff in a damages lawsuit filed by a The Born Korea franchisee against YouTuber Kim Jae-hwan, a former journalist. Producer Kim has raised doubts that run counter to Paik's explanation that he first developed paper-thin samgyeopsal.
Paik has explained the origins of paper-thin samgyeopsal on several broadcasts. He intended to buy a meat slicer but mistakenly purchased a ham slicer, and when he used this machine to slice frozen samgyeopsal, the meat came out curled as if shaved with a plane. Paik has said he took inspiration from this shape and first introduced the menu called "paper-thin samgyeopsal."
However, Producer Kim countered that paper-thin samgyeopsal had naturally appeared and been sold in regions such as Busan and Gwangju before 1993. He said he would prove this and produced content titled "Paper-thin Road," reporting on longtime local establishments in Busan, Masan, Gwangju and Cheongju that had sold paper-thin samgyeopsal since the 1980s. He also said a longtime restaurant in Seoul was confirmed to have sold the same menu since 1992.
Afterward, a The Born Korea franchisee filed for damages, saying Producer Kim raised false suspicions that harmed the brand image and reduced sales.
The court, however, found that Producer Kim could not be held liable for damages for raising the suspicions. The court determined that paper-thin samgyeopsal appears to have already been popular in Busan since the 1980s. It also found that when samgyeopsal is thinly sliced with a meat slicer, the meat naturally curls into a round shape, making it difficult to view paper-thin samgyeopsal as a food requiring a special manufacturing process.
The claim of declining franchise sales was not accepted either. The court determined that, given several controversies surrounding Paik were raised at the same time, it was difficult to conclude that franchise sales fell solely because of Producer Kim's YouTube video.
Finding that Producer Kim raised the issue for the public interest, the court dismissed the plaintiff's claim. It also ordered the plaintiff to bear the litigation expenses.
The Born Korea said this lawsuit was filed by an individual franchisee who judged they had been harmed by a YouTuber's malicious video. The Born Korea said it is preparing appropriate protection measures to prevent franchisees from suffering repeated harm.