A Korean appellate court ruled that a hospital employee who developed Guillain-Barré syndrome and nerve paralysis after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine should be recognized as having suffered an occupational injury that is compensable under Korea’s Workers’ Compensation Benefit System. The Seoul High Court ruled in favor of the Plaintiff in an appeal of a lawsuit denying benefits by the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service.
Korea’s COVID-19 Vaccine Workers’ Compensation Occupational Injury Case
- The Plaintiff was a healthy man in his 20s working for a hospital as an occupational therapist.
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, he received the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
- Starting the night after receiving the vaccine, the Plaintiff suffered from a fever, vomiting, weakness in his left arm and leg, and decreased consciousness.
- Two months after the vaccination, he was diagnosed with damage to his nervous system and musculoskeletal system. Finally, he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a peripheral neuropathy that causes motor and sensory nerve paralysis.
- The Plaintiff applied for benefits to the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service, claiming that the symptoms appeared after receiving the vaccine, following the hospital’s encouragement to receive the vaccine. However, the Service denied the benefits in January 2022, stating that “there is no causal relationship between the disease and work.”
Holding of the Court of First Instance
The Plaintiff filed an administrative lawsuit to overturn the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service’s denial of approval of benefits. The court of first instance ruled in favor of Plaintiff in September 2024, noting that, “although the causal relationship between the vaccine and the disease in question has not been clearly proven medically or scientifically, [Plaintiff’s] symptoms can be seen as having been caused by the vaccination. The court further noted the nexus between the work by noting that, “it appears that [Plaintiff] received the vaccine to perform his duties smoothly due to the nature of his work environment where he had to assist with the rehabilitation of patients. . . [Plaintiff] was a 25-year-old male when he received the vaccine, and there is no evidence that he developed the symptoms or received treatment for an underlying disease prior to vaccination.” The court also viewed that “Mr. A’s vaccination and the onset of symptoms were closely related in time.”
Holding of the Seoul High Court
Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service appealed the decision in the first trial. The appeals court dismissed the appeal, stating, “The Service’s reason for appeal is not significantly different from the argument made in the first trial, and the findings of fact and judgment of the first trial are acknowledged to be justified.” Thus, dismissing the appeal.
Sean Hayes is the first non-Korean attorney to have worked for the Korean court system (Constitutional Court of Korea) and one of the first non-Koreans to be a regular member of a Korean law faculty. He assists clients with their contentious, non-contentious, and business development needs, and is regularly quoted by leading media sources on Asia’s legal and business issues. Sean is rated a Top 100 attorney, and his firm was rated a top dispute resolution law firm in Korea.
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