South Korea’s Supreme Court has cleared Samsung leader Lee Jae-yong of all fraud charges, bringing an end to a legal battle that lasted several years.
The case centered around a controversial 2015 merger involving Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, as well as the accounting methods used at Samsung Biologics.
Lee, who has been the acting head of Samsung since 2014 and is the grandson of the company’s founder, was accused of manipulating stock values and using false accounting to strengthen his control over the business empire.
Prosecutors claimed these actions allowed him to secure leadership after his father, Lee Kun-hee, became incapacitated in 2014 and later passed away in 2020.
This verdict upholds previous rulings from lower courts, including a 2024 district court decision and a high court appeal, both of which found Lee not guilty.
The court confirmed that the merger and related accounting practices followed legal procedures.
Lee had previously been imprisoned for a separate bribery case in 2017 involving an advisor to former president Park Geun-hye.
He was released early on parole, and later granted a presidential pardon, citing the country’s need for business stability during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The legal disputes have cast a long shadow over Samsung in recent years, especially as the company faces tough global competition and declining sales in smartphones and semiconductors.
With this ruling, business leaders in South Korea are expecting more stable leadership at Samsung, which could help the firm manage ongoing trade pressures, including those involving exports to the United States.