Full Victory in Media Art Exhibition Service Fee and Damages Lawsuit

Client Information: Corporate Clients / Plaintiffs

Case Details: The clients were several video content production companies that participated in a large-scale media art exhibition organized by a well-known cultural institution in Korea.

Each production company entered into service agreements worth several hundred million KRW to create video and media content for the exhibition. The contracted work was fully completed and delivered in accordance with the agreements.

Additional contracts were later executed due to extensions of the exhibition period. However, even after the exhibition concluded, the organizer failed to pay most of the service fees owed to the production companies.

The total unpaid amount across the four companies reached approximately KRW 1.35 billion.

The clients subsequently retained Decent Law Firm’s civil litigation team to pursue legal action.

Decent's Strategy: Decent Law Firm strategically managed a complex multi-party dispute involving four separate production companies and aggressively pursued the defendant throughout the litigation process.

✔️ Contract Structure Analysis and Damage Calculation

Our team systematically reviewed the different contract structures and unpaid balances for each production company.

We carefully calculated the applicable delay damages (default interest) based on each contract’s payment deadline and legally applicable interest rate, ensuring that the claims were precisely structured and fully supported.

✔️ Evidence Collection and Liability Argument

Through board meeting records and financial flow analysis, Decent identified circumstances suggesting diversion and misuse of loan funds by the defendant.

We successfully demonstrated that the defendant’s claim of “financial difficulties” could not legally excuse non-payment obligations under the service agreements.

✔️ Strategic Expansion of Claims

During the litigation, Decent strategically amended the scope of the claims to include additional unpaid service fees arising from the extended agreements.

A consistent litigation strategy was maintained until final judgment, maximizing pressure on the opposing party.

Outcome: “Full Victory in Service Fee and Damages Claim”

Based on Decent’s meticulous evidence collection and structured litigation strategy, the court fully ruled in favor of the plaintiffs.

The court ordered the defendant to pay:
• Approximately KRW 1.35 billion in unpaid service fees to the four production companies; and
• Delay damages (statutory interest) calculated separately for each contract based on the applicable accrual dates.

Using creative works and refusing to pay for them is not merely a contractual issue — it can seriously threaten the survival of production companies and creators.

In large-scale projects, exhibitions, and subcontracting structures, payment delays are frequently justified by organizers citing internal funding problems or delayed financing.

However, even where written contracts exist, recovering large unpaid balances often requires aggressive legal strategy, evidence preservation, and professional litigation management.

If your company is facing unpaid service fees, delayed settlement, or breach of production agreements in Korea, Decent Law Firm’s civil litigation team can provide practical and strategic legal support based on real litigation experience in high-value disputes.

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