Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 23, 2026
2 min readLast updated: April 2, 2026
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The UK High Court partially set aside an arbitration award against South Korea in Elliott’s case over the 2015 Samsung C&T–Cheil merger, overturning findings tied to the NPS vote and sending other claims back to the tribunal.
LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - South Korea on Monday partially won its challenge to an arbitration award in its long-running dispute with U.S. hedge fund Elliott over the 2015 merger of two Samsung affiliates.
The South Korean government was ordered to pay Elliott around $100 million by the Netherlands-based Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2023.
Elliott had sued over the role played by South Korea's National Pension Service in approving the $8 billion merger between Samsung C&T, in which Elliott was a minority stakeholder, and Cheil Industries.
South Korea sought to challenge the tribunal's decision at London's High Court, arguing that the tribunal did not have jurisdiction under a free trade agreement with the U.S., but its case was rejected.
The Court of Appeal, however, allowed South Korea's appeal last year and sent the case back to the High Court – just hours after Samsung's Chairman Jay Y. Lee was cleared by South Korea's top court of accounting fraud and stock manipulation related to the same deal.
Judge David Foxton on Monday overturned part of the arbitration award in relation to the actions of South Korea's National Pension Service in voting in favour of the merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries.
The judge added that Elliott's claim in relation to the actions of the administration of then-South Korean President Park Geun-hye should be remitted to the arbitration tribunal to be decided upon again.
The South Korean government said in a statement that the ruling was a "valuable victory".
Elliott said in a statement that it had "succeeded in defending against the Republic of Korea's attempt to entirely set aside its more than $100 million arbitration award".
An Elliott spokesperson added that "the Republic's ongoing refusal to honor the award is only increasing the burden on Korean taxpayers, as interest continues to accrue at a rate of more than $10,000 per day".
(Reporting by Sam Tobin; Additional reporting by Heekyong Yang in Seoul; Editing by Louise Heavens and Jan Harvey)
A UK High Court ruling that partially overturns an arbitration award against South Korea in Elliott’s case over the 2015 Samsung C&T–Cheil merger, with parts remitted to the tribunal.
Judge David Foxton set aside portions related to the National Pension Service’s vote and remitted claims tied to the Park Geun-hye administration back to the arbitration tribunal.
The PCA’s 2023 award required South Korea to pay roughly $100 million including damages, costs and interest; the High Court ruling narrows aspects of that award.
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