Korea should expand class action for minority consumers: FTC chief nominee

Kim Sang-jo, nominee for head of South Korea’s antitrust watchdog Fair Trade Commission, said South Korea should adopt class action in broader sectors to enhance the rights of minority consumers against corporate wrongdoings.

In a report submitted to Rep. Park Yong-jin of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea for Kim’s parliamentary confirmation hearing, Kim said the scope of the sectors that enable class action should be gradually expanded to help a new system settle in society in a smooth manner.

Class action is currently available only in the securities sector.

Kim said that when considering the expansion of the class action system, court costs for the management of suits, time and money costs should also be factored.

Issues such as price collusions and violations on labeling/advertisement urgently need class action, as such corporate wrongdoings incur damage on many consumers even though individual damage might be small, he said.

Class action enables the whole consumer group to get compensation from a company, if an individual consumer of the group wins a lawsuit against the firm.

He also said the FTC should impose higher fines on conglomerates that funnel contracts and business orders to their affiliates.

If he takes office, he will seek to comprehensively reform the FTC’s fining system, he said.

By Kim Yoon-mi (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)