Actor Kim Soo-hyun has found himself in the midst of a billion-won defamation-related damages lawsuit, leading to a surprising situation where an advertiser has seized his residence, causing quite a stir.
Legal circles have revealed that CLASSYS, a company, requested a provisional seizure of Kim Soo-hyun’s Galleria Forêt apartment in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, which is valued at approximately ₩3 billion. The Seoul Eastern District Court granted this request due to contract termination and penalty claims.
Kim Soo-hyun’s representatives informed OSEN, “A provisional seizure has indeed taken place, and it seems that the advertiser filed for penalties based on contract clauses, resulting in further victimization of Kim Soo-hyun, who is already a victim. There is suspicion that manipulated KakaoTalk messages or audio recordings from the YouTube channel ‘Garo Sero Institute’ may have been used in the legal proceedings, which is frustrating.”
Fans of Kim Soo-hyun were quick to condemn CLASSYS’ actions, stating, “The advertiser is using the contract as an excuse to unlawfully reveal the actor’s personal information and even went as far as seizing his property, which is clearly unjust harm to an innocent victim. If no official statement is released, we will initiate a complete boycott against all brands and products associated with them.”
Reportedly, Kim Soo-hyun bought his Galleria Forêt apartment in 2013 for around ₩4 billion, and it is currently valued at approximately ₩13.5 billion. He also reportedly owns multiple other luxury properties.
Meanwhile, Kim Soo-hyun is engaged in a significant legal battle with the YouTube channel “Garo Sero Institute”, which accused him of having an inappropriate relationship with the late actress Kim Sae-ron during her underage years. The channel has been quoting Kim Sae-ron’s family since March, alleging that Kim Soo-hyun had an inappropriate relationship with her from her teenage years. However, Kim’s side has denied this, stating that they only dated from the summer of 2019 (after she became an adult) until the fall of 2020.
Kim Soo-hyun has taken action against the figurehead of Garo Sero Institute, Kim Se-ui, and Kim Sae-ron’s family, accusing them of violating the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes and defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act. He has also filed a ₩12 billion damages lawsuit. It was reported that on June 9, the court approved the provisional seizure of two properties under Kim Se-ui’s name, with Kim Soo-hyun’s agency, Gold Medalist, as the creditor.
In response to this, Kim Soo-hyun’s representatives clarified, “There are multiple provisional seizure cases. First, there was the seizure of Garo Sero Institute’s sponsorship account on May 20. In this instance, Kim Soo-hyun and Gold Medalist are co-creditors. Then, on June 9, Kim Se-ui’s home was seized, with Gold Medalist as the creditor.”
