1. The plaintiff's claim is dismissed.

2. The costs of lawsuit shall be borne by the Plaintiff.

1. Basic facts

A. On October 10, 2008, the Plaintiff, among the first floor of Jongno-gu Seoul Metropolitan Government Land Co., Ltd., leased approximately 40 square meters (hereinafter “instant building”) from the Defendant as the lease term from October 10, 2008 to October 10, 2010, the lease deposit amount of KRW 20 million, and the rent of KRW 170,000,000 per month (payment on October 10, 2008) and operated a licensed real estate agent’s office, etc. in the instant building.

B. After that, around April 1, 2011, the Plaintiff and the Defendant established a new lease agreement with respect to the instant building as the lease term from April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2013, the lease deposit is KRW 20 million, and the rent is KRW 270,000,000 (payment after the end of each month).

[Reasons for Recognition: Facts without dispute, entry of Gap 1, 2, and 9 evidence, purport of the whole pleadings]

2. Determination:

A. On April 1, 2011, the Plaintiff asserted that the Defendant unilaterally increased the rent by KRW 2.7 million per month during the renewal of the lease contract. This is in violation of Article 11(1) of the Commercial Building Lease Protection Act (hereinafter “Act”) and Article 4 of the Enforcement Decree of the same Act, and thus, the Defendant is obliged to return to the Plaintiff the amount equivalent to KRW 50,820,000 per month (i.e., KRW 1.7 million x 9%) higher than the reasonable limit, as the said amount does not exceed the amount equivalent to 9/100 of the rent or deposit at the time of the claim.

2. Determination:

A. Article 11(1) of the relevant law provides that "Where rent or deposit has become unreasonable due to any increase or decrease in taxes, public charges, and other burdens on the leased building or any change in the economic situation, the parties concerned may request an increase or decrease in the future rent or deposit. However, in cases of an increase, it shall not exceed the ratio in accordance with the criteria prescribed by Presidential Decree." The above provision provides that "The rent or deposit shall not exceed the ratio in accordance with the criteria prescribed by Presidential Decree."