SEOUL, Jan 18 (Reuters) - A South Korean court will sentence
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd heir Jay Y. Lee on a
bribery charge on Monday, a ruling likely to have ramifications
for his leadership of the tech giant as well as South Korea's
views toward big business.
If Lee is jailed, he will be sidelined from major decision
making at Samsung Electronics as it strives to overtake
competitors, and will be diverted from overseeing the process of
inheritance from his father, who died in October, crucial to
keeping control of Samsung.
If Lee remains free, he will be able to devote himself to
both while likely facing strong backlash claiming the South
Korean legal process shows undue leniency to chaebol, or
family-run conglomerates, criticised for wielding too much power
amid lapses in governance.
Lee, 52, was convicted of bribing an associate of former
President Park Geun-hye and jailed for five years in 2017. He
denied wrongdoing, the sentence was reduced and suspended on
appeal, and he was released after serving a year.
The Supreme Court then sent the case back to the Seoul High
Court, which will rule on it, and the sentencing, on Monday.
Under South Korean law, a jail term of three years or less
can be suspended; for longer sentences, the person must serve
out the term barring a presidential pardon.
Prosecutors have called for a nine-year jail term.
If imprisoned, the year Lee already served in detention will
count toward the sentence, as it is the same case.
Monday's sentencing can be appealed to the Supreme Court.
"In a case sent back by the Supreme Court, there is a
narrower range of options for the judges' bench... but it's also
true that the Supreme Court can't really touch the final court's
sentencing no matter what it is," said Rha Seung-chul, a lawyer
not connected with the case.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee. Editing by Gerry Doyle)