The province proceeded a lawsuit against a mother and daughter who visited the province in March 2020 despite having symptoms of COVID-19.
Key issues in the case focus on whether the mother and daughter were aware of their symptoms, and whether self-quarantine recommendations were legally binding.
Joseph Kim reports.

Report


A seoul-based mother and her daughter visited the island in March 2020 and stayed for 5 days despite showing symptoms of COVID-19.


They were prescribed fever reducers and took the medicine while traveling all over the island.

Both mother and daughter tested positive for COVID-19 at a public clinic right after returning to the Gangnam district of Seoul.


They had contact with an estimated 90 people at 20 locations.
Those 90 had been quarantined and the 20 locations including restaurants and tourist attractions were temporarily closed.


The province and affected businesses filed a damage suit against the pair at the Jeju District Court seeking damages of 130 million won in March 2020.
The first trial was held last Friday(June 25).


Key issues in the legal battle are whether the Seoul-based mother and daughter were aware of their symptoms of COVID-19, and how much the recommendation of the then self-quarantine was legally binding.


They visited Jeju five days after the daughter returned from the U.S.
However, as then home isolation was recommended and not mandatory, it becomes crucial to decide whether the recommendation was binding.

The attorney of the defendant states that both the mother and daughter have sinus infections and allergic rhinitis based on their medical record, and they had symptoms of the underlying diseases while traveling, therefore the two couldn’t be sure that they were infected with the coronavirus.

Meanwhile, the plaintiff argues that the pair ignored the national recommendation after the daughter returned from the US, and it’s clear they were aware of their COVID-19 symptoms as they tested for the virus right after they flew back to Seoul.


Now, eyes are on the mouth of the court as the first COVID-19 related damage suit has been launched.

However, it took too long to launch the suit filed one year and three months ago as it aims to send a strong warning against actions that threaten the deadly struggle against COVID-19. The second oral proceedings are scheduled for September.

Joseph Kim, KCTV