On May 2, the Seoul Southern District Court held the fourth date for pleadings regarding the civil suit submitted by Once Picture studio for compensation for damages against Suzy and the two individuals who published the government petition.

Suzy’s legal representative, Once Picture studio’s CEO Lee and his legal representative, a government official, and others attended to plead their case.

Suzy’s legal representative stated, “We still continue to find it difficult to accept that compensation should be paid.” They previously revealed, “The plaintiff claims that Suzy never apologized for the incident, but contact was made after the incident.”

However, during the fourth date for pleadings, CEO Lee argued, “I hope you acknowledge the fact that no one came to me to apologize about this incident.”

He continued, “It’s difficult just being here in this spot. I was impacted mentally and financially by this incident. Understand that it was difficult that all of these things happened so suddenly.”

This civil suit began in May of 2018 when YouTuber Yang Ye Won stated that three years ago, she had been forced to take revealing photos during a photo shoot and was also sexually harassed by the owner of the studio while working part-time as a model.

A petition to the government to support an official investigation into the matter was created with the title “Hapjeong Once Picture Illegal Nude Filming.” Suzy signed the petition and shared it through her personal Instagram account. The number of individuals who signed the petition rose from 10,000 to over 170,000 individuals.

However, CEO Lee stated he felt victimized because he took over Once Picture studio in January of 2016 and is not related to the incident. In response, Once Picture submitted a civil suit against Suzy for sharing the government petition through her Instagram, the government for not deleting the government petition immediately, and the two individuals who posted the government petition.

During the past pleadings, Suzy’s legal representative consistently stated, “This could become a precedent to limit the freedom of speech of celebrities,” and added, “We find it difficult to accept that compensation should be paid.”

The final date for pleadings for this case is June 13.

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