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LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo. (Photo=Yonhap News) |
[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Jisun] LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo and other family members lost the first trial of an administrative suit filed against tax authorities to cancel some of the inheritance taxes. The court saw that it was legitimate for the tax authorities to recognize the trading value of unlisted stocks as the market price and impose inheritance taxes.
On the 4th, the 5th administrative division of the Seoul Administrative Court ruled against the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed by Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, First Lady Kim Young-sik (mother), LG Welfare Foundation CEO Koo Yeon-kyung (sister) and Koo Yeon-soo against the head of the Yongsan Tax Office. The court ruled that "all the plaintiffs' claims are dismissed" and that "the plaintiffs will bear the costs of the lawsuit."
Chairman Koo and others filed a lawsuit against deceased former LG Group Chairman Koo Bon-moo in September 2022 to cancel the 1.12% LG CNS stake he inherited, saying the inheritance tax calculated by the tax authorities was excessive. The plaintiff valued LG CNS's stock at 15,666 won per share. On the other hand, the Seoul Regional Tax Office judged that the transaction value per share should be valued at 29,200 won after an inheritance tax investigation and a review by the property evaluation review committee. As a result, the tax authorities said they should evaluate the shares at 37,960 won (30% premium for the largest shareholder) per share, and corrected and notified Koo's family of 12.6 billion won in inheritance tax, including an additional tax, in November 2020.
The court ruled in favor of the tax authorities. "The transaction value in this case seems to have a legitimate reason for the practice of the transaction and appropriately reflects the objective exchange value of the stock," the court said. "It is legitimate to calculate the value of the stock in this case by recognizing the transaction price as the market price."
AlphaBIZ Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
