Court Sides with News Anchor's Mother-in-Law

Kim Joo-ha

News anchor Kim Joo-ha must return over W200 million to her mother-in-law, a Seoul district court ruled Thursday (US$1=W1,099).

In February, the mother-in-law filed a lawsuit against Kim to recover the rent from a building in Seoul's Ichon she owns. She had left Kim in charge of the building from May 2007 to May last year while she was in the U.S.

Kim married her husband, surnamed Kang, in 2004, but the two are in the middle of an acrimonious divorce. Kang was convicted of strangling and slapping his wife several times.

Kim argued that the rent she collected was meant as living expenses for the couple, but the court took the mother-in-law's view that Kim had only been entrusted with the care of the building.

Kim collected W2.6 million in rent per month between May 2007 and May 2012, and then W3.1 million a month until May last year.

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Court Sides with News Anchor's Mother-in-Law

Kim Joo-ha

News anchor Kim Joo-ha must return over W200 million to her mother-in-law, a Seoul district court ruled Thursday (US$1=W1,099).

In February, the mother-in-law filed a lawsuit against Kim to recover the rent from a building in Seoul's Ichon she owns. She had left Kim in charge of the building from May 2007 to May last year while she was in the U.S.

Kim married her husband, surnamed Kang, in 2004, but the two are in the middle of an acrimonious divorce. Kang was convicted of strangling and slapping his wife several times.

Kim argued that the rent she collected was meant as living expenses for the couple, but the court took the mother-in-law's view that Kim had only been entrusted with the care of the building.

Kim collected W2.6 million in rent per month between May 2007 and May 2012, and then W3.1 million a month until May last year.

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Supreme Court Clears Man of Raping Underage Girl

The Supreme Court on Monday overturned the conviction of a man in his 40s for repeatedly sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.

A Seoul district court had slapped the man, identified as Cho, with a 12-year prison term for rape, but an appellate court later scaled back the term to nine years because he had no prior record of sexual offenses.

Cho approached the girl back in 2011 in the elevator of a hospital, claiming he knew a talent agent who has access to celebrities. She gave him her mobile phone number hoping to meet some stars and find a way into show business. Cho met her several times and they had sex.

When the girl became pregnant, he told her to run away from her home and the two began living together.

The girl's father was sick with a brain tumor and her mother was also suffering health problems. Other acquaintances persuaded her to report Cho to the police in 2012. By then she had given birth to his child.

Cho told the court that he and the girl were involved in a "romantic relationship" and that the decision to leave her parents had been her own. However, in the initial verdict, the court concluded that it was fear of reprisals from Cho that prevented her from informing others.

The Supreme Court saw things differently. It pointed out that the girl visited Cho in prison every day as his trial progressed and continued to send him letters and mobile text messages saying she loved him. It reasoned that such behavior "makes it difficult to believe" her claims.

The court did not accept that Cho coerced the girl into sending the letters and text messages.

The age of consent in Korea is 13, so any conviction requires proof that the minor was forced into sex.

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Court Rebuffs Samsung's Bid to Halt Microsoft Lawsuit

A U.S. federal court has rejected Samsung's application to halt a lawsuit filed by Microsoft over patent royalties.

Microsoft filed a suit against Samsung in August seeking to verify whether the Korean company infringed Microsoft patents used in the Android OS.

Samsung says Microsoft violated contractual terms in its acquisition of Nokia that included the patents.

Samsung last month turned to the International Court of Arbitration for help and asked the U.S. court to delay the patent lawsuit in the meantime. In September, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella visited Samsung headquarters in Seoul for negotiations with vice chairman Lee Jae-yong, but the lawsuit continues.

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"Blade Runner" Pistorius set to return to court in murder case

PRETORIA (Reuters) - South African athletics star Oscar Pistorius is set to attend a court hearing in Pretoria on Tuesday in his first formal appearance since his release on bail in February for the Valentine's Day killing of his girlfriend.

Pistorius, 26, has admitted to shooting Reeva Steenkamp, 29, four times through a locked bathroom door on February 14 at his home in an affluent Pretoria community.

In pre-trial testimony, his lawyers told the court the shooting was a tragic mistake and Pistorius was acting in self-defence against what he thought was an intruder.

Prosecutors accuse him of premeditated murder for firing into the door, hitting Steenkamp in the head, hip and arm.

"This hearing is just for a postponement, which may not even go above 10 minutes," prosecution spokesman Medupe Simasiku said.

Pistorius, a double amputee nicknamed "Blade Runner" for the prosthetics he uses in competition, was one of the stars of the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics in London.

His arrest and subsequent murder charge shocked millions around the world as he was seen as a symbol of triumph over adversity.

In South Africa, he was a hero for both blacks and whites, transcending the racial divides that persist 19 years after the end of apartheid.

Pistorius has mostly kept out of the public eye since he secured bail. Media reported that in April he partied at a nightclub in a Johannesburg suburb after his bail conditions were relaxed in March.

The Pistorius camp said the matter was blown out of proportion and he went out for a quiet dinner with friends after spending weeks in the house with family.

South Africa does not have trial by jury so pre-trial media coverage is seldom deemed to be prejudicial.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

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"Blade Runner" Pistorius set to return to court in murder case

PRETORIA (Reuters) - South African athletics star Oscar Pistorius is set to attend a court hearing in Pretoria on Tuesday in his first formal appearance since his release on bail in February for the Valentine's Day killing of his girlfriend.

Pistorius, 26, has admitted to shooting Reeva Steenkamp, 29, four times through a locked bathroom door on February 14 at his home in an affluent Pretoria community.

In pre-trial testimony, his lawyers told the court the shooting was a tragic mistake and Pistorius was acting in self-defence against what he thought was an intruder.

Prosecutors accuse him of premeditated murder for firing into the door, hitting Steenkamp in the head, hip and arm.

"This hearing is just for a postponement, which may not even go above 10 minutes," prosecution spokesman Medupe Simasiku said.

Pistorius, a double amputee nicknamed "Blade Runner" for the prosthetics he uses in competition, was one of the stars of the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics in London.

His arrest and subsequent murder charge shocked millions around the world as he was seen as a symbol of triumph over adversity.

In South Africa, he was a hero for both blacks and whites, transcending the racial divides that persist 19 years after the end of apartheid.

Pistorius has mostly kept out of the public eye since he secured bail. Media reported that in April he partied at a nightclub in a Johannesburg suburb after his bail conditions were relaxed in March.

The Pistorius camp said the matter was blown out of proportion and he went out for a quiet dinner with friends after spending weeks in the house with family.

South Africa does not have trial by jury so pre-trial media coverage is seldom deemed to be prejudicial.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

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