“‘Get my permission to date a boyfriend’… The horrific end of a Seoul National University professor’s abuse of power”

The Supreme Court finalizes the dismissal of a Seoul National University professor… "Abuse of power and sexual harassment are justifiable reasons."

The professor who was dismissed for engaging in abusive behavior and sexual harassment, such as telling graduate students at Seoul National University that "you must get permission to date your boyfriend" and "do not treat other professors with respect in front of me," has lost the legal battle at the Supreme Court.

According to the legal community on the 17th, the 3rd Division of the Supreme Court (Chief Justice Roh Kyung-pil) confirmed the ruling of the plaintiff's loss in the appeal against the dismissal of Professor A from the Department of Spanish Language and Literature at Seoul National University.

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According to the ruling, Professor A joined Seoul National University in 2011, but from 2016 onwards, he repeatedly interfered in the personal lives of his graduate students, telling them "you cannot go on a two-day trip with your boyfriend" and "if you broke up with your boyfriend, you must explain why." Allegations of sexual harassment also emerged in 2017, where he was accused of touching a graduate student's thigh scar and forcing her to intertwine her arms with him at a conference in Spain.

The investigation by the Human Rights Center at Seoul National University confirmed that, in addition, he sent group emails to graduate students demanding that they "serve like shadows next to professors" and "do not flatter other professors in front of me," which constituted unfair demands. Furthermore, research ethics violations such as duplicate publication of papers and improper authorship attribution came to light, leading to his dismissal in August 2019.

A reversal of the first trial's ruling… "Dismissal is justified even if sexual harassment is not recognized."

Professor A filed a complaint with the Ministry of Education’s Teacher Appeal Committee, but when it was dismissed, he initiated a lawsuit. In the first trial, reflecting the insufficient evidence for the charge of forced molestation, the court ruled in his favor, stating that "some of the main grounds for disciplinary action were not recognized."

However, the appellate court overturned this decision, ruling against Professor A. The Seoul High Court stated, "Even if the charge of sexual harassment is not acknowledged, dismissal is justified based on the remaining grounds," pointing out that "the group emails are a typical example of abuse of power, using the professor's superior position to force graduate students into unpaid tasks." The Supreme Court affirmed this judgment as correct.

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Claims of unlawfully collected evidence dismissed.

Professor A also claimed that another non-regular instructor at Seoul National University had unlawfully accessed his emails and that the materials obtained were used in the investigation by the Human Rights Center, arguing that "dismissal based on unlawfully collected evidence constitutes a serious procedural defect."

However, the court rejected this argument, stating, "The principle of excluding unlawfully obtained evidence under criminal procedure law cannot be directly applied to administrative litigation."

With this ruling, Professor A has lost the possibility of reinstatement at Seoul National University. In the academic community, evaluations are emerging stating, "The judiciary has clearly sounded the alarm regarding power abuse by professors and violations of research ethics."

Image source: Material photos for understanding the article / gettyimagesbank, Material photos for understanding the article / photo=insight