A cosmetics company in South Korea has increased its claims for damages against actor Kim Soo-hyun after it cancelled its advertising contract with him over the controversy involving his relationship with the late actress Kim Sae-ron. 

On Nov. 21, the Seoul Central District Court held the first hearing on the 500 million won (about $339,452) lawsuit for damages filed by the cosmetics brand against Kim Soo-hyun, star of the Netflix series “Queen of Tears,” and his agency, Gold Medalist. 

The trial started seven months after the complaint was filed in April, Korean media reported. 

Kim Sae-ron, 24, was found dead on Feb. 16 this year, Kim Soo-hyun’s birthday. Following this, the actor was accused of dating Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor, an allegation he completely denied. 

He admitted dating Kim Sae-ron but said it was when she was an adult. 

Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun (Instagram)

Korean media reported that the cosmetics brand’s contract with Kim Soo-hyun as a model was valid until August, but it was terminated in March after public opinion worsened due to rumors of his relationship with the late Kim Sae-ron. 

"We are unable to fulfill the contract because model Kim Soo-hyun violated the ‘maintaining dignity’ clause,” the cosmetics company said. It also pointed out that he initially denied the relationship with Kim Sae-ron but changed his stance after her death. 

The company said Kim Soo-hyun violated the duty to maintain dignity by dating a minor, and then changed his position and admitted to the relationship, the reason why the contract was terminated. 

It explained that it recalculated the occurrence and scope of damages to reflect these circumstances, and increased the amount of claims from the original 500 million won to 2.86 billion won (about $1.94 million). 

"We applied the model fee in case of contract violation. If the duty to maintain dignity is violated, it is doubled. We measured the actual damages incurred. Currently, advertisers have terminated their contracts. The drama has finished filming, but its release has been halted. We will also submit evidence that a celebrity cannot fulfill his or her duties as a model,” the company added. 

Kim Soo-hyun’s side refuted this, saying, "It is unclear what specific actions violated the duty to maintain dignity. It is completely untrue that they dated when they were minors, and they dated after (the late Kim Sae-ron) became a college student. It is difficult to understand how a relationship between adults violates the duty to maintain dignity."

The court said, "The scope of damages was stated to be twice the penalty, but it would be good to review whether that estimate is correct. It seems necessary to separately present arguments regarding the scope of damages and the occurrence of damages."