[1] Where there is a proximate causal relationship between work and death of an employee who died of a suicide, and matters to be considered for the recognition of a proximate causal relationship

[2] In a case where Gap, who worked as the head of the Seoul Metro team, was required to reprimand the company as a result of the audit conducted by the Board of Audit and Inspection on the ground that he suffered approximately KRW 1.7 billion loss, and committed suicide, such as omission in promotion and fear and depression due to extreme stress in the idea of right to indemnity, the case holding that the judgment below erred by misapprehending legal principles, since it is reasonable to see that Gap's normal perception ability, ability to choose an act, and mental suppression power was caused to commit suicide due to severe occupational stress, due to depression caused by severe occupational stress, it is reasonable to see that he was caused to commit suicide, and thus, a proximate causal relation may be acknowledged between Gap's work

[1] Article 37 (1) of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act / [2] Article 37 (1) of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act

[1] Supreme Court Decision 2016Du57502 Decided May 11, 2017 (Gong2017Ha, 1402) Supreme Court Decision 2016Du58840 Decided May 31, 2017 (Gong2017Ha, 1402)

Plaintiff (Law Firm Persons, Attorneys Yoon Young-young et al., Counsel for the plaintiff-appellant)

Korea Labor Welfare Corporation

Seoul High Court Decision 2016Nu53564 decided October 20, 2016

The judgment below is reversed and the case is remanded to Seoul High Court.

The grounds of appeal are examined.

1. The term “occupational accident” as referred to in Article 37(1) of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act refers to the injury, disease, physical disability, or death of an employee who was caused by his/her duties during the performance of his/her duties. As such, the causal relationship between his/her duties and the disaster ought to be proved. However, if the causal relationship is not necessarily clearly proven in medical or natural science, and there is proof of proximate causal relationship from a normative point of view, it should be deemed that there is proof. Therefore, in the event a worker dies due to a suicide, the disease is caused or aggravated due to the occurrence of occupational disease, occupational or stress overlaps with the main cause of the disease, and it can be presumed that such disease is caused suicide in such a situation as to the extent that normal recognition ability, ability to choose action, mental suppression ability, or considerable decrease in the ability to make reasonable judgment, a proximate causal relationship between his/her duties and death. In order to acknowledge such proximate causal relationship, it is not necessary to comprehensively consider the degree of suicide or symptoms of the deceased’s disease after suicide, possibility of recovery, age, physical, and psychological condition 10.

2. According to the reasoning of the first instance judgment cited by the lower court and the evidence duly admitted, the following facts are revealed.

A. On September 191, 191, the deceased non-party 1 (hereinafter “the deceased”), who is the husband of the Plaintiff, was employed in Seoul metro (hereinafter “non-party company”) for about 20 years and 20 months, and was in charge of tax and funding as the head of the ○○○ team before committing suicide. The deceased, while working in the non-party company, was awarded an official commendation on six occasions from the head of Seoul Special Metropolitan City and the president of the non-party company, did not have been subject to disciplinary action during the period of office, and was sexually explicit and comfortable, and even with the fee.

B. From February 16, 2010 to February 18, 2011, the Board of Audit and Inspection conducted an audit of “actual conditions of management improvement of subway public enterprises” for non-party companies, and found that “Although non-party companies are subject to the zero (0) rate of value-added tax on screen and fish construction, the non-party companies paid construction cost including the value-added tax to the △△ industry, but thereafter, the company engaged in construction business did not apply the zero (0) rate, but suffered losses for which the value-added tax of approximately KRW 1.724 billion was not refunded due to the closure of the business

C. After the above audit, the Board of Audit and Inspection conducted an additional investigation on the deceased’s employees, including the deceased, from April 201 to June 201, and conducted two further investigation on the deceased. On November 6, 2011, the Non-Party Company sent a written demand for reprimand to the effect that the suspension from office against the deceased and three other persons shall be suspended. On November 25, 201, the Non-Party Company issued a copy of the written demand for reprimand to the deceased on November 25, 201.

D. While the Deceased tried to request a review while suppressing the demand for reprimand by the Board of Audit and Inspection, the Deceased’s request for review was made, but the remaining three of the employees, other than the Deceased, were subject to a disciplinary measure on February 1, 2012, which was taken on February 1, 2012, was reduced to three months by its own committee for punishment.

E. Until the audit of the Board of Audit and Inspection, the Deceased had not received mental treatment due to symptoms such as anxiety and depression, but after having become aware of the result of audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection on November 18, 201, he was unable to locked and meals were started, and the office began to smoked with cut tobacco again, and it was found that the office is autonomous in favor of the deceased. During two weeks before the death, the deceased did not sit well on the spot, and the work was almost little, and the non-party 2 of the same staff at his own responsibility “I will deal with the crimes and desire all of the people of the company.” The same shall apply to the company. The same shall also apply to the repetition of the words “I will am satly satly satly satly satly satly satly satly satly satly satly and satly satly satly satly.”

F. In addition, the Deceased was expected to promote more than the motive at the latest, and there was a lot of concern about the omission in promotion due to disciplinary action upon the demand of the Board of Audit and Inspection, and there was a great apprehension that the Deceased would be able to exercise the right of reimbursement against the loss suffered by the non-party company.

G. On November 25, 2011, the deceased received a copy of the request for reprimand by the Board of Audit and Inspection from the non-party company, and subsequently, the deceased told his spouse that “I am dead in the world. I see that I am dead in the world, I am forgotten the entrance password every day, I am forgotten, and spawn down the head knife after being spaced in the new spath, or cut tobacco again by getting back the tobacco back to the empty hand.”

H. On November 26, 2011, the deceased left a house with a minor tea around 11:00 on the following day, and on the same day, the deceased changed the house to a mountain path with around 13:00 on the same day and changed to a mountain path, and again became a house again, and on the following day, the deceased was found to have committed suicide by putting trees from a mountain path at around 08:30 on the same day.

I. The non-party 3 of the department of mental health in Dolg University was diagnosed to the effect that “the suicide of the deceased is likely to have been caused by depression related to business stress.” The non-party 4 of the medical specialist in the Geong University also diagnosed to the effect that “it is likely that acute stress might have been caused by psychological burden on the network’s unexpected disciplinary action and the right to indemnity, and the ability to solve the practical problem can be presumed to have been caused by the inherent limit, and it shall be deemed that there was a possibility that the suicide might have been caused by the network’s own ability, and the symptoms of depression will have deepened.”

3. We examine these facts in light of the legal principles as seen earlier.

A. If the Board of Audit and Inspection examines the Deceased, etc. and demands reprimand against the Deceased, it is highly likely that the Deceased would be subject to disciplinary action at his discretion, and that the results would be omitted in promotion, and that the Deceased would be subject to serious stress in mind that the claim for reimbursement from the non-party company would be biased.

B. In light of the statements, actions, etc. of the deceased after the suicide, it can be seen that he/she continuously experienced extreme anxiety and depression due to such stress, and the person immediately before the suicide shows a very unstable mental disorder, such as leading to abnormal behavior, and can be deemed to have rapidly aggravated the depression.

C. In addition, in light of the fact that the deceased did not leave a material to his family members or their neighbors before suicide, and carried a log set up for the convenience of visitors, and committed suicide by hanging a tree, the deceased’s suicide appears to have been done contingent in a state of mental disability caused by depression.

D. The Deceased’s brightness and displeasure, and maintained a smooth relationship with the foregoing, and it is difficult to deem that the Deceased’s symptoms, other than his duties, have reached the symptoms as above, given that there was no history of receiving treatment due to the symptoms of psychotropic illness, such as depression, prior to the audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection.

E. Therefore, in full view of these circumstances, it is reasonable to view that the deceased was at the risk of suicide due to severe occupational stress, due to a mental disorder whose normal perception ability, ability to choose an act, or ability to restrain mental disorder has been significantly deteriorated. Therefore, proximate causal relation between the deceased’s work and the death may be acknowledged.

4. Nevertheless, the lower court did not closely examine the cause and degree of occupational stress received by the deceased, the background leading up to the depression of the deceased, the psychological situation of the deceased at the time of suicide, etc., and determined that the occupational stress exposed to the deceased is difficult to be deemed as serious stress to the extent that the death and the work of the deceased may cause depression or deepen, and denied a proximate causal relationship between the deceased’s death and the work. In so determining, the lower court erred by misapprehending the legal doctrine on the causal relationship between the work and the death in the occupational accident, thereby failing to exhaust all necessary deliberations, thereby adversely affecting the conclusion of the

5. Therefore, the lower judgment is reversed, and the case is remanded to the lower court for further proceedings consistent with this Opinion. It is so decided as per Disposition by the assent of all participating Justices on the bench.

Justices Noh Jeong-hee (Presiding Justice)