Overview

• The Daegu High Court dismissed all claims in a class-action lawsuit seeking compensation for the 2017–2018 Pohang earthquakes, reversing a lower court's decision.
• The appellate court ruled that plaintiffs failed to sufficiently prove negligence by the government or steelmaker Posco in connection to the state-backed geothermal energy project.
• The 2017 earthquake, believed to have been induced by geothermal experiments, displaced nearly 1,800 people and caused damages estimated at 144.5 billion won ($102.6 million).
• In 2023, the Pohang District Court had partially sided with plaintiffs, ordering 2–3 million won in damages per claimant, a ruling now fully overturned.
• Representing 96% of Pohang's population, plaintiffs and civic groups have announced plans to appeal the decision to South Korea's Supreme Court.