À̹ÌÁö È®´ë Namyang Dairy Headquarters [Photo by Han Joo-hyung]
South Korean private equity firm Hahn & Company (Hahn & Co.) has filed an additional lawsuit against the owner family of the country¡¯s No. 2 dairy firm Namyang Dairy Products Co. ahead of the appellate judgment on the liability over the stake sale deal fallout next month.
According to sources on Wednesday, Hahn & Co. filed a lawsuit against former Chairman Hong Won-sik and his family to claim damages of about 50 billion won ($37.4 million) via its legal representatives Yoon & Yang on Tuesday.
The PEF in September won its lawsuit against Namyang Dairy Products for unilaterally terminating a deal over the controlling stake in the dairy company. Hong¡¯s representatives however immediately appealed the decision, and the appellate judgment is due on Dec. 8.
For better preparation after a series of losses, Hong recently changed its legal representatives.
¡°Given the court¡¯s unequivocal ruling in all four court injunctions and the lawsuit itself that Hong and family must unconditionally honor the agreements they signed and agreed to, Hahn & Co. has decided to further seek compensation for damages incurred by Hong¡¯s actions,¡± said an official from Hahn & Co.
Hahn & Co. signed a share purchase agreement in May last year to acquire a 53 percent controlling stake in Namyang Dairy held by Hong and his family members for about $220 million, but the dairy company abruptly called off the deal in September of the year.
Shares of Namyang Dairy rose 3.72 percent to close at 432,500 won on Thursday.
By Cho Yun-hee, Jeon Hyung-min and Lee Ha-yeon
[¨Ï Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]